Robert William Collymore (13 January 1958 – 1 July 2019) was a Guyanese-born Kenyan businessman who served as the

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

Safaricom Safaricom PLC is a listed Kenyan mobile network operator headquartered at Safaricom House in Nairobi, Kenya. It is the largest telecommunications provider in Kenya, and one of the most profitable companies in the East and Central Africa region. T ...

, a multi-national

telecommunication Telecommunication, often used in its plural form or abbreviated as telecom, is the transmission of information over a distance using electronic means, typically through cables, radio waves, or other communication technologies. These means of ...

s company based in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

Early life and education

Collymore was born in

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

and raised by his grandparents there. At the age of 16, he moved to join his mother in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, attending

Selhurst High School Selhurst High School for Boys was a name that has been given to two separate schools in England that existed at different times, but occupied the same site. The former school had been a grammar school that closed in 1988, the latter was the relau ...

. Upon leaving school, he was offered a place at

Warwick University The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded in 1965 as part of a ...

, but had to turn this down as he was ineligible for funding.

Career

From 1993, Collymore worked in various positions in the telecommunications industry in the UK, including work for

Cellnet Telefonica UK Limited, trading as O2 UK (stylised as O2), is a British telecommunications services provider. It is the largest mobile network in the United Kingdom, with approximately 23.2million subscribers . The network was launched in 198 ...

Dixons Retail Dixons Retail plc was one of the largest consumer electronics retailers in Europe, which merged with Carphone Warehouse in 2014 to create Dixons Carphone, which was renamed Currys plc in 2021. In the United Kingdom, the company operated Curr ...

and

Vodafone UK Vodafone Limited, trading as Vodafone UK (stylised as vodafone), is a British telecommunications company, owned since May 2025 by VodafoneThree, a joint venture between Vodafone Group (51%) and Three owner CK Hutchison Holdings (49%). The ...

. In 2003 he moved to Japan to manage the integration of J-Phone into the

Vodafone Group Vodafone Group Public Limited Company () is a British multinational telecommunications company. Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It predominantly operates services in Asia, Africa, Europe, and ...

. In 2006 he became the Governance Director for Africa at Vodafone and subsidiary Safaricom. In 2010 he was appointed

of Safaricom.

Personal life

Collymore married his third wife, Wambui Kamiru, an artist, on 1 April 2016 in an invitation-only wedding at an upmarket residence in Kitisuru, Nairobi. Collymore met Kamiru in Nairobi during a fundraiser for survivors of the Loreto Convent Msongari school bus crash that occurred in July 2011. She was part of the event in her capacity as an alumnus and Collymore was there representing Safaricom Foundation with fundraising. Collymore had two children during his second marriage, and became stepfather to his wife's children from her first marriage to Joseph Kinyua.

Illness and death

Collymore travelled to the

in October 2017 to receive treatment for

acute myeloid leukemia Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a cancer of the myeloid line of blood cells, characterized by the rapid growth of abnormal cells that build up in the bone marrow and blood and interfere with haematopoiesis, normal blood cell production. Sympt ...

. He returned to Kenya in July 2018 to resume his duties as CEO of Safaricom while undergoing treatment. He died at his home on the morning of 1 July 2019.

Awards

Collymore was in 2012 awarded a Moran of the Order of the Burning Spear.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collymore, Bob 2019 deaths 1958 births British expatriates in Kenya Guyanese people of African descent Guyanese emigrants to the United Kingdom Guyanese emigrants to Kenya Kenyan chief executives Morans of the Order of the Burning Spear Deaths from acute myeloid leukemia Safaricom people