BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (RIM) today announced the appointment of its former Turkey managing director Alexandra Zagury as the company’s new MD for South Africa and Southern Africa.

Based in Johannesburg, Zagury is set to oversee all of RIM's operations, sales and marketing efforts for the region.

The move comes at a time when RIM’s global market share of the smartphone industry is shrinking owing to competition from the likes of Apple and Google Android devices.

However, markets such as South Africa have been strong for RIM. According to GfK Retail and Technology, BlackBerry smartphones accounted for 7 out of the 10 best-selling smartphones in South Africa in May 2012.

GfK data in May also said that BlackBerry has been the leading smartphone vendor in South Africa for over 20 months.

"We are proud of the company’s success in this region, particularly in South Africa where BlackBerry is the leading smartphone brand, and I believe there is still tremendous opportunity for growth,” said Zagury.

“Our goal is to maintain customer loyalty and expand RIM's leading position in South Africa by being even more customer-focused and by working closely with our carrier and developer partners across the region,” she added.

Alexandra Zagury has been with RIM for more than four years and was RIM's first MD appointed in Turkey. Prior to moving to Istanbul, Zagury was based in the UK, where she was responsible for regional strategic planning and business operations for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

And prior to joining RIM in April 2008, Zagury was at Yahoo! Europe, where she headed up the UK and Pan-Euro Business Operations and Intelligence teams.