Legal team size: Three dedicated for Scangroup but part of a larger WPP legal team globally

Major legal advisers/ external counsel (optional): Bowmans in various markets across Sub-Sahara Africa, Dentons HHM, DLA Piper IKM advocates, among others

What are the most significant cases and transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

The team currently leads the legal entity rationalisation (LER) and corporate restructuring of WPP Scangroup Plc across Sub-Saharan Africa, through the closure and dissolution of certain dormant subsidiaries and the strategic disposal of businesses and assets of specific subsidiaries. We have successfully completed the transfer of the entire business and assets of Hill and Knowlton Strategies Nigeria Ltd (HK Nigeria) to Skot Public Relations Limited.

Furthermore, it manages key dispute resolution matters, including landmark cases involving various areas such as intellectual property rights and debt collection against certain Government of Kenya agencies for work done in the past.

It also ensures business integrity is embedded in how Scangroup conducts business and providing corporate affairs support to the Group CEO, including, but not limited to, government and regulatory relations, as Scangroup is a listed company on the Nairobi Securities Exchange.

Additionally, it oversees the governance aspects of Scangroup and ensures compliance with various laws and regulations, including adherence to company policies. Finally, the team leads in monitoring and managing key principal legal risks. This is all part of the company’s sustainability agenda, and the team contributed immensely to the publication of Scangroup’s first sustainability report last year.

Which recent political, economic or regulatory changes have impacted your work the most in recent years?

Regulatory compliance, data privacy laws, and tax obligations in our different operational locations have significantly impacted my work over the last 3 to 5 years. Scangroup has faced complex regulatory and tax requirements, but we have maintained a regulatory register and tracked our tax compliance across markets. I have regularly reviewed and monitored our data ethics, privacy, and security risks, as well as our approach to regulatory and legal compliance.

Are there any causes, business or otherwise, that you are passionate about?

I am very passionate about the youth of Africa, which fuels my love for the creative, arts, and sports spaces. Through my work with Scangroup, which engages extensively with creatives, and my freelance role as team manager of the Kenya Rugby XVs team, I strive to make a difference for the youth. Over the last eight years, I have worked with hundreds of young Kenyan men and women. With Africa’s growing young population, I firmly believe that the creative industries, arts, and sports will be key to the continent’s economic growth, serving as a gateway to prosperity and opportunities for this growing population.