African music service Mdundo has announced Daniel Ahenkorah as country manager for Ghana.

Headquartered in Kenya and boasting a catalogue of nearly 500 000 African songs, Mdundo operates with a model of fostering inclusivity in music access on the continent.

The latest development aims to strengthen the company’s presence in the West African country, leveraging Ahenkorah’s strategic insights and industry acumen to foster collaborations and enhance content partnerships.

A music licensing expert, Ahenkorah’s career has seen him bridge the gap between creativity and commerce, playing a pivotal role in connecting artists, composers and businesses locally. 

Speaking to Music In Africa, Ahenkorah, who has previously held key positions in renowned music agencies like Boomplay Ghana, where he was the lead curator and later head of content and partnerships, said he was “thrilled to join the talented team at Mdundo and contribute to the continued success of this innovative company.”

Ghana is one of five key markets that constitute Moundo’s focus on the continent, the others being Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa. The company enjoys strategic partnerships with major telecom providers such as Vodacom, Airtel, and MTN, and anticipates its mobile subscribers in Africa to reach 613 million by 2025.

“These key markets encompass a combined population of 422 million people, approximately 35% of sub-Saharan Africa’s population,” Mdundo said in its annual report last year. “They offer substantial growth opportunities due to high internet penetration rates and robust economic development. In June 2023, these markets accounted for 15.0 million of Mdundo’s 26.6 million monthly active users.”

According to a 2023 GSMA report, the projected number of mobile service subscribers in sub-Saharan Africa is set to reach 615 million by 2025, in addition to the approximately 500 million subscribers recorded in 2020.

On the company’s strategy for Ghana, Ahenkorah stressed a goal of offer music legally to consumers in our market. “Streaming, in the sense that it requires sophisticated devices for seamless enjoyment, can be a bit inaccessible,” he said. “High-end mobile phones are needed for this purpose. However, with Mdundo, since we exclusively focus on downloads, we cater to music consumers at the lowest level of social status. They can still enjoy music legally and contribute to the growth of their favourite artists.”