SERENGETI Breweries Limited (SBL) has supported hundreds of farmers across the country and provided employment to over 200,000 people both directly and indirectly while contributing 27bn/- in tax annually, said the company’s outgoing Managing Director, Mark Ocitti.
Mr Ocitti made the remarks in Dar es Salaam over the weekend at an occasion to bid him farewell as SBL’s parent company Diageo has appointed him to relocate and lead Kenya Breweries, a sister company of SBL.
The brewer is also planning on increasing enrolment of students from needy backgrounds studying agricultural diploma courses under its scholarship programme dubbed ‘Kilimo Viwanda’ which has benefited over 230 students over the past three years of Mr Ocitti’s leadership.
Mr Ocitti was at the helm of the business for the past three years, heading the brewer’s businesses including the production plants in Dar es Salaam, Moshi and Mwanza.
In the course of three years of Ocitti’s tenure at SBL, the brewer has notably registered major milestones, including launching the expansion project of its Moshi plant earlier last year.
Speaking at the farewell ceremony, Deputy Minister for Industries and Trade, Mr Exaud Kigahe commended Mr Ocitti for his contribution to the growth of the industrial sector in Tanzania through his hard work, commitment and integrity.
“For the past three years that Mr Ocitti has been with us here in the country, he has demonstrated that he is a visionary leader, who wanted to take SBL to greater heights, and this applied to SBL as a company as well as SBL staff,” he said.
The deputy minister particularly hailed Mr Ocitti for overseeing the implementation of the first ever production plant in Moshi which is an all-female-run plant.
“It is my understanding that one of SBL’s pillars is inclusivity and diversity and Mr Ocitti has implemented this with utmost precision, for the first time in our country, we have an all-female run plant thanks to Ocitti’s commitment to inclusivity,” he said.
The deputy minister further commended the outgoing Managing Director for overseeing the launch of SBL’s expansion plant in Moshi, noting that it was through Ocitti’s leadership that the project became a success.
For his part, SBL Board Chairman, John Ulanga expressed his gratitude to Ocitti on behalf of the board of directors, recalling Mr Ocitti’s achievements at SBL.
“In mere three years that SBL was under the leadership of Mr Ocitti, I can confidently say that he has registered many achievements for SBL from a business perspective and to the Tanzanian community through various community development projects that he has championed, from water projects, education and farmer centric empowerment projects,” he said.
At the farewell ceremony, SBL introduced its new Managing Director, Obinna Anyalebechi who is joining the business from Diageo London.
