Three years after taking over the reins at Nile Breweries Limited (NBL), Adu Rando, the Brazilian Managing Director of the AB InBev subsidiary, has been promoted to Global Director, BEES MarketPlace Africa.
In his new role, Rando will lead the expansion and optimisation of BEES, AB InBev’s flagship B2B digital commerce platform, across African markets — a move that recognises his instrumental role in transforming Nile Breweries into one of the fastest adopters of the platform globally.
According to Nile Breweries, “Given his experience supporting our technology platforms, including the BEES ordering and payment system, he’s been tapped to lead it across Africa.”
He assumes the new role in January 2026.
A Natural Fit for the Digital Commerce Role
BEES — short for “Business-to-Business E-commerce System” — is a global digital platform created by AB InBev to make life easier and business more profitable for small and medium-sized retailers. It allows bar owners, stockists, and distributors to browse products, place orders, access deals, track deliveries, and view business insights — all in one interface.
Uganda has been one of the fastest-growing BEES markets worldwide, thanks in large part to Rando’s leadership and local team execution. Since its launch in June 2022, BEES has become a cornerstone of Nile Breweries’ commercial model, enabling more than 80% of its sales through the digital channel — the fastest adoption rate in AB InBev’s global network.
“Our purpose – to dream big to create a future with more cheers – drives us to be leaders in innovation in Uganda. BEES is part of our digital transformation and enables our stockists, resellers, and outlets across Uganda to grow through a convenient order generation platform,” said David Valencia, then Managing Director at Nile Breweries, during the app’s launch.
As of September 30 2025, BEES had digitised AB InBev’s relationships with more than 6 million customers across 29 markets, capturing roughly 70 per cent of the company’s revenues through its B2B digital platforms. In 3Q25, the platform generated USD 13.3 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV), up 11 per cent year-on-year, while its Marketplace business—through which BEES monetises its route-to-market by selling third-party products—accelerated 66 per cent to USD 935 million in quarterly GMV, approaching the USD 1 billion mark.
Uganda became the 18th market to go live — and one of the earliest African adopters, after Tanzania and South Africa.
From Brazil to Beijing to Kampala — and Now Africa
Rando’s promotion caps off a 20-year journey with AB InBev, marked by a consistent focus on digital transformation and route-to-market innovation.
A native of Brazil, he joined AB InBev in 2003 and rose through various sales leadership roles before being tapped to spearhead the brewer’s digital sales platform project in China in 2016. There, he grew digital app users from 1,500 to over 250,000 within three years. He later led the Route-to-Market transformation across six African countries — Tanzania, Uganda, Mozambique, Zambia, Ghana, and Botswana — before being appointed Nile Breweries’ Managing Director in February 2023.
Rando’s tenure, which lasted just two years and nine months, was marked by a blend of transformation and turbulence.
When he arrived in Uganda, he brought with him more than 20 years of AB InBev experience spanning Brazil, China, and Tanzania, and immediately set out to modernise Nile Breweries’ operations in a complex environment of inflation, high excise taxes, and shifting consumer behaviour.
Letters to My Younger Self: Robinah Siima — “Success Is Quieter, But Richer”Among his standout achievements was the digitisation of trade and distribution through the BEES app, which now facilitates over 80% of Nile Breweries’ sales — the fastest adoption rate globally within AB InBev. He also ramped up local sourcing to 99%, integrating Ugandan farmers more deeply into the company’s value chains for barley, sorghum, and cassava, thereby strengthening local participation in the brewery’s supply network.
Through the GRIT (Growing Retailers Innovatively Together) initiative, Rando oversaw the training of more than 1,300 small retailers, equipping them with better business skills and tools to improve retail performance and sustainability. He further guided the company through complex regulatory and tax reforms, including the rollout of Uganda’s digital tax stamp system, ensuring compliance while maintaining operational stability.
Although detailed financial performance figures are not publicly available, Rando’s tenure is widely recognised for embedding a stronger digital, locally anchored, and customer-centric culture within Nile Breweries.
Leaving at a Critical Time for Both Company and Industry
While Rando’s promotion marks a personal and professional milestone, it also comes at a delicate moment for Nile Breweries and Uganda’s beer industry.
Nile Breweries has been grappling with the fallout of an internal fraud investigation involving inflated marketing budgets and supplier collusion. The scandal exposed governance lapses and prompted an internal audit and subsequent legal action to recover losses. The company remains under public and internal scrutiny over its control systems and accountability structures.
It is important to note that the alleged fraud predated Adu Rando’s tenure, having begun in 2021, well before he assumed leadership at Nile Breweries. However, it was under his watch that the scheme was uncovered, investigated, and brought before the courts — a rare and commendable demonstration of transparency and corporate courage in a business environment where most companies choose silence over scrutiny. Indeed, according to the PwC Global Economic Crime and Fraud Surveys and the Uganda Police Annual Crime Report 2024, only 14% of corporate fraud cases in Uganda are ever reported to regulators, with most firms opting to handle such matters internally to protect their reputations. By taking decisive legal action, Nile Breweries — under Rando’s leadership — broke ranks with this entrenched culture of concealment, setting a new benchmark for corporate accountability and ethical governance in Uganda’s private sector.
At the same time, the wider industry is in transition. Uganda Breweries Limited (UBL), Nile Breweries’ main rival, is undergoing leadership restructuring under its new Managing Director Félicité Nson, as Diageo reevaluates its East African business strategy. This period of flux had presented Nile Breweries with a strategic opening to consolidate market share — making Rando’s exit especially significant.
In the aftermath of the scandal, Nile Breweries has overhauled nearly its entire marketing department, including senior leadership positions, as part of an internal restructuring aimed at restoring trust and tightening oversight. With both a new Managing Director and a new marketing leadership team stepping in at a time of heightened sensitivity, the company operates in a fragile environment that requires closer monitoring and stronger compliance discipline. Fortunately, Rando’s new continental role as Global Director, BEES MarketPlace Africa includes oversight of Uganda’s digital route-to-market, ensuring continuity, accountability, and sustained vigilance over the systems he helped digitize and strengthen.
Industry analysts note that while Rando’s promotion demonstrates AB InBev’s confidence in his abilities, it also leaves Nile Breweries at a crossroads: balancing the need for leadership stability and governance restoration with the ongoing pursuit of digital and commercial growth.
A Legacy of Digital Transformation
Rando leaves behind a legacy defined by innovation, local inclusion, and resilience. Under his leadership, Nile Breweries became one of the most digitally advanced subsidiaries in AB InBev’s Africa network — not only transforming sales and distribution but also redefining how the brewer connects with customers.
His successor will inherit a company that, despite its challenges, is digitally empowered, locally integrated, and strategically positioned to shape the next chapter of Uganda’s beer industry.
