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Travelstart, one of Africa’s largest online travel agencies, has announced the appointment of Philip Åkesson as Country Manager for Nigeria.

In a statement released on Monday, Travelstart said Åkesson takes over from Andre Van Straaten, who held the dual positions of Country Manager for Nigeria and International Markets Project Manager.

“Philip brings a wealth of experience and we are delighted to welcome him to the Travelstart Nigeria team. As an ecommerce business leader, he will be an asset to Travelstart and will bring a depth of practical knowledge that our customers and partners will benefit from,” said Stephan Ekbergh, Travelstart’s CEO.

The Cape Town-based company said Van Straaten will continue to serve as the International Markets Project Manager, overseeing strategic relationships with suppliers in West Africa. Meanwhile, Åkesson will be responsible for overseeing commercial and operational strategies for Travelstart Nigeria and spearheading initiatives to grow the brand across the region. His appointment took effect from June 1, 2016.

An alumnus of the Stockholm School of Economics, Åkesson was previously a founding member of Konga.com, which in only a few years has grown to become one of Africa’s largest online marketplaces. At Konga, Philip took on various roles ranging from operations, strategy, investor communications, business intelligence, and strategic partnerships.

“I am excited to start a new challenge within the Travelstart group and look forward to working with the team to expand its presence across verticals in the region, leveraging my experience in the local ecommerce space,” said Åkesson.

Founded in 1999 in Stockholm, Sweden, Travelstart has operations in 16 countries across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. In February, the company announced that it had raised $40 million from Amadeus Capital Partners and secured a strategic partnership with MTN to expand its operations across Africa.