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Ahmad Farroukh

JOHHANESBURG. – MTN Group Ltd says Ahmad Farroukh, the chief executive officer of the wireless carrier’s South African unit, has resigned amid strikes and declining sales in the company’s second-biggest market.

“This was a difficult decision to take for Ahmad, but unavoidable due to personal and family reasons,” MTN CEO Sifiso Dabengwa said in an e-mailed statement on Monday, without giving further detail.

The resignation is effective July 31, the company said.

MTN, based in Johannesburg, has been battling labor union-led strikes over pay and bonuses in its home market, where sales have declined due to competition and price cuts imposed by regulators.

South Africa is the company’s second-biggest unit in terms of subscriber numbers, after Nigeria.

The shares traded 2,8 percent lower at 227 rand as of 3:06 pm in Johannesburg, compared with a 1,6 percent fall in the FTSE/JSE Africa Top 40 Index. MTN is Africa’s biggest mobile phone company, with more than 229 million customers in 22 countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

A successor to Farroukh will be announced as soon as a new appointment is finalised, MTN said. Farroukh has held various positions including chief operating executive and Nigeria CEO since joining MTN in 2006.

Meanwhile, Reuters reported that South African shares fell to a two-week low on Monday, with shares in MTN shedding almost 3 percent. – Bloomberg.