Cadbury Nigeria has appointed Ayman Hussein F. Gaafar as Managing Director, effective May 15, 2026, placing an FMCG executive with deep beverage market experience at the helm of the company whose refreshment drinks segment generated N104.59 billion in revenue last year.
The board approved the appointment following a recommendation from its Governance and Risk Committee, communicated to the Nigerian Exchange Limited via a statement signed by Company Secretary Afolasade Olowe. Gaafar, also known as Ayman Fahmy, succeeds Folake Ogundipe, who held the interim position from December 2025 after the retirement of former MD Oyeyimika Adeboye.
Bournvita is the engine of this business. According to Cadbury Nigeria’s unaudited FY 2025 results, the refreshment beverages category, led by Bournvita, contributed N104.59 billion of total revenue of N169.84 billion, with confectionery accounting for N53.53 billion. That ratio makes the incoming MD’s beverage credentials more than relevant. Gaafar’s tenure at Danone, a company whose global portfolio spans nutritional beverages and dairy-based drinks, sits at the front of his CV for a reason.
His wider FMCG career covers Procter & Gamble, Reckitt Benckiser, and Shan Foods, with hands-on P&L accountability across the Middle East, Africa, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Canada, and the Levant. The breadth of that regional exposure matters for a brand like Bournvita, which still derives the overwhelming share of its revenue from the domestic Nigerian market. Export sales slipped to N11.71 billion in 2025, per the company’s unaudited results, a number the incoming MD may choose to revisit.
Gaafar inherits a business mid-recovery. Cadbury Nigeria posted a profit after tax of N12.09 billion for FY 2025, reversing a N22.22 billion loss in 2024, according to its unaudited full-year financials. Revenue climbed 31% year on year, gross profit margins improved from 14.1% to 21.6%, and the balance sheet strengthened materially. But the company still carries N25.21 billion in retained losses and a net profit margin of 7.1% that leaves limited cushion in a high-cost operating environment.
Currency stability was a major contributor to the 2025 turnaround. A more predictable naira and sharply reduced foreign exchange losses eased a financial pressure that had overwhelmed earnings in the two prior years. Whether that tailwind holds, or whether Gaafar must grow his way through the next phase without it, is the commercial question sitting on his desk from day one.
For Bournvita specifically, the competitive pressure is real. The brand competes directly with Milo from Nestlé and Ovaltine from Associated British Foods in Nigeria’s malted beverage category, a segment where brand equity, shelf presence, and affordability drive purchase decisions at every income tier. Gaafar’s go-to-market credentials are precisely what a brand defending category leadership in a price-sensitive market requires.
The board will next face scrutiny over timing: whether Gaafar can accelerate margin improvement quickly enough to support a return to dividend payments, which the company last made for the 2022 financial year. Cadbury’s next scheduled results disclosure will be the first real test of the direction the new MD intends to set.
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