Mara Group

Last updated
Mara Corporation
Company type Private limited company
Industry Conglomerate
Founded1996 (1996)
Founder Ashish J. Thakkar
Headquarters,
Area served
Africa, Middle East and Indian Sub-Continent
Key people
Jagdish Thakkar,
Chairman
Ashish J. Thakkar
Founder and CEO
Products Financial services
Infrastructure
Technology
BPO
Real Estate
Investment Advisory
Number of employees
Approximately 11,000 (2014) [1]
Website maraphones.com

Mara Corporation is a multi-sector business services company. It operates in the technology, financial services, manufacturing, real estate and agriculture industries.

Contents

The company was founded by Ashish J. Thakkar in 1996, and is now active in 24 countries and employs more than 11,000 people. [1] It is headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.[ citation needed ]

Description

Mara was founded by Ashish J. Thakkar, in 1996. The company grew into an international multi-sector business, with operations and interests across 24 countries including 22 in Africa. [2] In 2010 Mara Group was selected by the World Economic Forum as a Global Growth Company. [3] The company is active in 22 countries and, through its investments and operations, employs more than 11,000 people. [1]

The Mara Foundation was founded in 2009 and is the company's social enterprise project. It provides African entrepreneurs with resources for online mentor-ship, business incubation and funding. [4]

Mara Phones

Mara Phones part of the Mara Corporation launched smartphone factories on the African Continent in October 2019. Kigali, Rwanda was the inaugural location for the Mara Phones manufacturing facility and Durban, South Africa opened shortly after. [5]

Mara Phones has launched two models, the Mara X and Mara Z. [6]

Mara Phones Lab

Mara Phones Lab is the technology arm of Mara Phones.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nokia</span> Finnish multinational telecommunications, technology and electronics corporation

Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finland, in the Helsinki metropolitan area, but the company's actual roots are in the Tampere region of Pirkanmaa. In 2020, Nokia employed approximately 92,000 people across over 100 countries, did business in more than 130 countries, and reported annual revenues of around €23 billion. Nokia is a public limited company listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki and New York Stock Exchange. It was the world's 415th-largest company measured by 2016 revenues, according to the Fortune Global 500, having peaked at 85th place in 2009. It is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Economy of Rwanda</span>

The economy of Rwanda has undergone rapid industrialisation due to a successful governmental policy. It has a mixed economy. Since the early-2000s, Rwanda has witnessed an economic boom, which improved the living standards of many Rwandans. The President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, has noted his ambition to make Rwanda the "Singapore of Africa". The industrial sector is growing, contributing 16% of GDP in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">InFocus</span> American company

InFocus Corporation is a privately owned American company based in the state of Oregon. Founded in 1986, the company develops, manufactures, and distributes DLP and LCD projectors and accessories as well as large-format touch displays, software, LED televisions, tablets and smartphones. InFocus also offers video calling services. Formerly a NASDAQ listed public company, InFocus was purchased by Image Holdings Corp., owned by John Hui, in 2009 and is now a wholly owned subsidiary headquartered in Tigard, Oregon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oki Electric Industry</span> Japanese manufacturing company

Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd., commonly referred to as OKI, OKI Electric or the OKI Group, is a Japanese information and communications technology company, headquartered in Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo and operating in over 120 countries around the world.

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. The company offers mobile telephony, mobile money transfer, consumer electronics, ecommerce, cloud computing, data, music streaming, and fibre optic services. It is most renowned as the home of M-PESA, a mobile banking SMS-based service.

The phrase women in business refers to female businesspeople who hold positions, particularly leadership in the fields of commerce, business, and entrepreneurship. It advocates for their increased participation in business.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Growth Centre</span> Economic research centre of London School of Economics

The International Growth Centre (IGC) is an economic research centre based at the London School of Economics, operated in partnership with University of Oxford's Blavatnik School of Government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lenovo smartphones</span> Smartphones

Lenovo smartphones are marketed as the "LePhone" in Mainland China and the "IdeaPhone" overseas are smartphones designed and manufactured by the Motorola Mobility, ZUK Mobile and Medion, divisions of Lenovo. On April 27, 2017, Lenovo announced that the ZUK brand would cease operations. In 2015, Lenovo subsumed its own smartphone division into the acquired Motorola brand.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) is an African non-profit organization founded in 2010 by Tony O. Elumelu and headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. It is a pioneer member of the Global Impact Investment Rating System (GIIRS). So far, the Foundation has empowered over 18,000 African entrepreneurs across 54 African countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roland Agambire</span> Ghanaian entrepreneur

Roland Agambire is a Ghanaian entrepreneur. He was the chief executive officer of Agams Holdings and the chairman and chief executive officer of the information and communications technology company Rlg Communications.

Ashish J. Thakkar is a Rwandan-based entrepreneur. He is the founder of Mara Group and Mara Foundation and also a co-founder of Atlas Mara Limited. Thakkar was born in the United Kingdom, but he moved to East Africa as a teenager before founding Mara Group, a Pan-African conglomerate, at the age of 15. Mara Group's operations and investments span 22 African countries. He is the author of The Lion Awakes: Adventures in Africa's Economic Miracle.

European Marketing Research Centre (EMRC) (is a not-for-profit international association, founded in 1992 in Brussels, Belgium. The organization exists to encourage and facilitate private sector investment in Africa to create sustainable economic development and drive regional change through international partnerships. EMRC is a collective network of entrepreneurs, financiers, consultants and officials based throughout the world. The organization’s strategic focus is to support economic development in Africa through partnership between African entrepreneurs and ventures and international corporations, and financial services firms. EMRC also supports intercontinental collaboration between African ventures.

The electronics industry in Bangladesh is one of the fastest-growing industries in the country with great potential. Popular Bangladeshi electronics brands include Walton Electronics, Singer Bangladesh, Jamuna Electronics, Vision Electronics. Local companies such as Fair Group, Butterfly Group, Electra, Rangs Group, Electro Mart, and Transcom Group manufacture and assembles Electronics Home Appliances in collaboration with foreign brands such as Samsung, Whirlpool, LG, Sony, Gree, Konka, and Sharp.

Atlas Mara Limited, formerly referred to as Atlas Mara Co-Nvest Limited, is a financial services holding company formed to undertake the acquisition of target banks in Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Make in India</span> Government initiative to encourage manufacturing in India

Make in India is an initiative by the Government of India to create and encourage companies to develop, manufacture and assemble products made in India and incentivize dedicated investments into manufacturing. The policy approach was to create a conducive environment for investments, develop a modern and efficient infrastructure, and open up new sectors for foreign capital. The initiative targeted 25 economic sectors for job creation and skill enhancement, and aimed "to transform India into a global design and manufacturing export hub."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji</span> Nigerian social entrepreneur

Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji is a Nigerian social entrepreneur and human development expert whose work cuts across entrepreneurship, education, youth development and public leadership. She is the founder and chief executive officer of Rise Networks, a Nigeria-based private and public sector funded Youth Interest social enterprise.

Akaliza Keza Gara is a Rwandan IT activist and entrepreneur. She is active in promoting the field to girls and has been recognised for her activism by awards from the Rwandan government and the International Telecommunication Union. Gara has founded a technology consultancy and website design company and an animation studio. She has been described as "one of the few young Rwandan women who have made significant strides in changing the face of technology in the country" and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transsion</span> Chinese smartphone company

Transsion Holdings is a Chinese manufacturer of mobile phones based in Shenzhen. It was the largest smartphone manufacturer by sales in Africa in 2017, and also sells mobile phones in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Latin America. Its brands include phone brands such as Itel, Tecno, Infinix; after-sales service brand Carlcare; and accessories brand Oraimo. It manufactures phones in China, Indonesia, Pakistan, Ethiopia, Bangladesh and recently in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monica Musonda</span> Zambian lawyer and entrepreneur (c. born 1976)

Monica Katebe Musonda is a Zambian businesswoman, lawyer and entrepreneur, who resigned a well-paying job as a corporate attorney to start and then lead a Zambian-based food-processing company, Java Foods Limited, where she is the chief executive officer.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "The lion's roar: Ashish J Thakkar's rise from Rwanda genocide to $1bn powerhouse". Arabian Business.com. 12 December 2014. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  2. "Ashish Thakkar - Mara Group - Naseba". naseba.com. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  3. "List of Global Growth Company Members As of 19 November 2013" (PDF). World Economic Forum. 19 November 2013. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
  4. "UN Women And Mara Foundation Announce Partnership To Support Women Entrepreneurs". United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. 29 January 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
  5. "Rwanda launches first 'Made in Africa' smartphones". reuters.com. 8 October 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  6. "Rwanda just released the first smartphone made entirely in Africa". fastcompany.com. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2023.