Safaricom Ethiopia Named Ethiopia’s Top Employer, Joins Africa’s Leading HR Rankings 2026

Safaricom Ethiopia has been named Ethiopia’s top employer for the third consecutive year and, for the first time, recognized among Africa’s Top Employers 2026 by the Top Employers Institute.

The announcement came at the 2026 awards ceremony held at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, which brought together leading organizations from across the continent.

The telecom operator achieved an overall score of 98.08% in the Top Employers Institute’s HR Best Practices Survey, reflecting high performance across 20 HR topics within six domains, including People Strategy, Work Environment, Talent Acquisition, and Employee Wellbeing.

Ethiopia’s Leading Employer

Safaricom Ethiopia retained its position as the number one employer in the country for the period 2024–2026. CEO Wim Vanhelleputte said the recognition reflects the company’s “people-centered culture” focused on nurturing talent and supporting Ethiopia’s expanding digital economy.

The company currently employs 896 staff, 96% of whom are Ethiopians. The Top Employers Institute highlighted Safaricom’s progress in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), noting increased female representation in leadership and nearly 4% representation of persons with disabilities.

Regional Recognition

For the first time, Safaricom Ethiopia was also named a Regional Top Employer in Africa, joining the continent’s leading companies in HR excellence.

The award cited the company’s alignment of people strategy with organizational goals, its digitization of HR processes, achieving 75% automation and a digital maturity index of 3.1, and strong investment in learning and development through the Safaricom Digital Academy.

Hundreds of employees have been reskilled and deployed into digital roles as part of this program.

Safaricom PLC in Kenya also maintained its status as Kenya’s top employer for the fifth consecutive year, further demonstrating the group’s regional focus on employee development and workplace excellence.

Continental Leaders

Vodacom Group was named Africa’s Top Employer for the third consecutive year, followed by JTI (Japan Tobacco International) and Mondelēz International. Other regional winners included Britam Holdings, Absa Group, BAT, DHL Global Forwarding, Huawei, The Coca-Cola Company, Schneider Electric, and Philip Morris International.

National winners recognized in Johannesburg included:

• South Africa: Vodacom South Africa (#1), Santam (#2), Daimler Truck Southern Africa (#3)
• Tanzania: NMB Bank Plc, CRDB Bank Plc, Barrick Gold Corporation
• Cameroon: MTN Cameroon received its first official certification
• Public Sector: Joburg Market and the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA)

The awards program evaluates organizations on 20 HR topics across six domains, covering areas such as employee wellbeing, work environment, talent acquisition, learning and development, and organizational culture.

Jefferson Wachira is a writer at Africa Digest News, specializing in banking and finance trends, and their impact on African economies.