Netflix has announced that the Zimbabwean billionaire Strive Masiyiwa is now a member of their board of directors as he replaces Susan Rice.
Susan Rice was once U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and former National Security Adviser to the U.S. under President Barack Obama, she is currently leaving Netflix to work under the administration of the incoming U.S. President-elect, Joe Biden.
“We are delighted to welcome Strive to the Netflix board,”
Netflix co-founder, chairman and co-CEO Reed Hastings said in a statement.
“His entrepreneurship and vision in building businesses across Africa and beyond will bring valuable insights and experience to our board as we work to improve and serve more members all around the world.”
The Zimbabwean billionaire Masiyiwa has an estimated net worth of $1 billion, he heads one of Africa’s biggest telecommunications and technology group Econet which operates in Africa and Europe.
He launched mobile phone network Econet Wireless Zimbabwe in 1998 after a years-long fight with Zimbabwe’s state-owned telecommunications operator.
In a statement provided by Netflix, Masiyiwa said, “Netflix is at the forefront of bringing great entertainment from anywhere in the world to everyone in the world, and I look forward to working with the board and all stakeholders to continue its traditions of innovation and growth.”
Strive serves on several international boards including Unilever Plc, National Geographic Society, Asia Society, and the Global Advisory boards of Bank of America, the Council on Foreign Relations (in the US), Stanford University, and the Prince of Wales Trust for Africa, and is a longstanding board member of the United States Holocaust Museum’s Committee on Conscience.
