Nile Breweries Limited, the Ugandan entity of AB InBev, is set to welcome a new Managing Director, Nkanyiso Mncwabe, to replace Adu Rando, who late last year got promoted to a continental digital commerce role, CEO East Africa Magazine has learned.
Senior executives familiar with the transition confirmed to CEO East Africa that Mncwabe — a seasoned South African commercial leader within AB InBev’s African network — is expected to assume office this January, pending final internal communications.
A Commercial Strategist Shaped Inside AB InBev
According to professional records reviewed by CEO East Africa, Mncwabe brings over 15 years of progressive experience across The South African Breweries (SAB) and AB InBev.
Most recently, Mncwabe has been serving as Regional Director for the South African East Coast and Eswatini, a role he assumed in 2025, while earlier in the same year, he was briefly deployed as Acting Country Director at Zambian Breweries, AB InBev’s Zambian subsidiary. Before these assignments, he built his reputation through a succession of high-impact commercial roles at The South African Breweries, including a four-year stint as Regional Commercial Director for the East Coast from 2021 to 2024, and an earlier posting as Regional Commercial Director for the Central Region and Lesotho from 2019 to 2020.
His operational grounding was shaped in the field, where he led business units as District Manager in both Soweto and KwaZulu-Natal, following earlier roles as Sales Manager, Area Manager, and Executive Assistant to the General Manager — experiences that collectively gave him a deep understanding of route-to-market execution, team leadership, and performance-driven culture across diverse markets.
“We are delighted to welcome Nkanyiso Mncwabe to Nile Breweries Limited,” Emmanuel Njuki, Legal and Corporate Affairs Lead at NBL, wrote in a statement to the CEO East Africa Magazine.
“His proven track record of driving commercial excellence across multiple African markets, combined with his deep understanding of the AB InBev system, positions him ideally to lead NBL’s continued growth and strengthen our position as Uganda’s premier brewing company,” added Mr. Njuki.
“We also extend our sincere gratitude to Adu Rando for his outstanding leadership and contributions to Nile Breweries. Under his stewardship, the company achieved significant milestones in operational excellence, market expansion, and community impact,” he further said.
A Leadership Philosophy Anchored on Performance — and People
On his LinkedIn profile, Mncwabe describes himself as a: “Results-oriented FMCG Executive with 10+ years of cross-functional leadership experience driving growth in Sales, Revenue Management, Trade Marketing, and Logistics.”
He emphasises talent development as his key differentiator: “My core value proposition is transforming commercial teams through strategic talent development, instilling entrepreneurial habits, and ensuring uncompromising financial rigour.”
Interestingly, he also highlights creativity as part of his leadership DNA — noting his interest in illustrative art and word-art blogging as ways of staying inspired.
Strong Academic and Executive Grooming
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Mncwabe’s academic grounding is equally robust. He holds a Master of Business Leadership (MBL) from the University of South Africa (UNISA), complementing a Bachelor of Business Administration earned at the IMM Graduate School of Marketing. He also completed a Graduate Diploma in Marketing from the same institution, further strengthening his commercial and strategic training. In addition, he has participated in executive leadership developmentthrough the Hult Ashridge Executive Education programme and undertook further professional certification at the University of Cape Town, rounding off a profile that blends formal management scholarship with continuous executive grooming.
This blend of operational experience and structured leadership development reflects AB InBev’s philosophy of grooming executives through multi-market exposure and continuous education.
Stepping In at a Defining Moment for Nile Breweries
Mncwabe succeeds Adu Rando, who was promoted to lead BEES MarketPlace Africa — AB InBev’s flagship B2B digital platform.
Rando’s tenure at the helm of Nile Breweries was defined by a series of transformative shifts. He presided over the digitisation of more than 80 percent of the company’s sales channels, embedding BEES as the primary route-to-market platform and reshaping how the brewer interacts with distributors and retailers. At the same time, he deepened Nile Breweries’ commitment to local sourcing, integrating thousands of Ugandan farmers more firmly into its barley, sorghum, and cassava value chains. His period in office also coincided with — and helped drive — important governance reforms, particularly in the wake of internal restructuring and investigations that demanded tighter oversight, transparency, and system controls.
It is into this evolving environment that Mncwabe now steps. He inherits a digitally advanced but still-settling organisation, one whose systems are modernised but where teams are still adapting to new ways of working. He also faces intensifying competition from Uganda Breweries Limited, now itself under renewed leadership and strategic recalibration. Beyond corporate rivalry, the broader marketplace remains complex — shaped by rising taxes, cost-of-living pressures that are reshaping consumer behaviour, and persistent supply-chain disruptions that continue to test pricing, margins, and operational resilience.
A New Chapter — With Familiar Questions
Nile Breweries’ leadership turnover — now on its sixth managing director in ten years — continues to spark debate around AB InBev’s fast-rotation leadership model.
However, insiders argue that Mncwabe’s long grooming inside the system may finally provide the mix of cultural alignment and operational depth the brewery needs.
Official communication from Nile Breweries and AB InBev is expected in the coming days.
Until then, CEO East Africa will continue tracking developments around what may become one of the brewery industry’s most closely watched executive transitions of 2026.
Nile Breweries Limited, established in 1951, is Uganda’s leading beer manufacturer with breweries in Jinja and Mbarara. The company produces a diverse portfolio of brands including Nile Special, Club Pilsener, Eagle Lager, and Castle Lite, among others. NBL is part of the AB InBev family, the world’s largest brewer.
