5 Things you may not know about Dr Nkosana Moyo

Dr Nkosana Moyo just announced his candidacy for next year’s presidential election earlier on today.  Here are five things you may not know about him.

1. He is an economist and he has a PhD in Physics from Imperial College (University of London)
2. He served as Managing Director of Standard Chartered Merchant Bank in Zimbabwe and also became Regional Head of Corporate Banking – Africa, based in London where he had regional responsibility for 14 African countries.
3.  He was appointed Minister of Industry and Internal Trade by President Robert Mugabe soon after Zanu-PF won a heavily contested election in 2000. Moyo was described by US diplomats as “a surprising appointment given that Moyo has always taken pains to cast himself as a political independent”
4. In 2001 Moyo resigned as Minister of Industry and International Trade and left to join his family in South Africa because he disagreed strongly with Zanu-PF policies. After his resignation, President Mugabe called him a coward saying: “I do not want ministers who are in the habit of running away. I want those I can call amadoda sibili (real men), people with spine.”
5. Dr Nkosana Moyo is the man who came up with the name Econet. When he was the CEO of Standard Chartered Merchant Bank Zimbabwe, Strive Masiyiwa approached him with a business plan to source funding. Standard Chartered was happy to fund the business.  But Dr Moyo suggested that Strive should change the name of the network from Enhanced Communications Network to Econet.

You can learn more about him by clicking on this link.