Microsoft names Lawal new MD of African Dev’t Centre

Microsoft has appointed Gafar Lawal as new managing director of its African Development Centre (ADC) recently launched in Nigeria.

Lawal, who worked at Morgan Stanley, also spent over six years working at Microsoft’s United States headquarters as Partner Architect in the Windows server group and Windows phone services division.

He also spent 10 years as First Vice President and Chief Technology Architect at Merrill Lynch.

“The ADC is unlike any other existing investment on the continent – enabling us to better listen to our customers, develop locally and scale for global impact – in the grand scheme of things, presenting a strategic opportunity for us to comprehend a continent that is rapidly adopting cloud technology and massive innovation at the intelligent edge.

“We have been actively sourcing talent to join our team of engineers and are delighted to have Gafar bring his leadership skills to the team,” said Mike Fortin, corporate vice president at Microsoft.

While responding, Mr Lawal said, “I am looking forward to embarking on this incredible new journey with the Microsoft team and effectively playing my part in bringing digital transformation to the continent at large.

“I hope that as we continue, to not only identify and nurture talent but also bring about unprecedented change, we will continue to aid every individual involved to achieve more.”