Six candidates are vying to succeed Patrick Njoroge as the governor of Kenya’s central bank, a changeover that comes as the East African nation contends with stubbornly high inflation and a depreciating currency.
Njoroge’s second and final four-year term as head of the Central Bank of Kenya expires on June 17 and the nation’s public service commission is assessing the credentials of potential replacements. It will send a final list of three names to President William Ruto, who will make his selection and submit it to Parliament for approval.
The shilling has dropped to its lowest level on record this year, declining almost 10% against the US dollar since January and inflation has remained above the upper end of central bank’s target of 7.5% since June. The bank hiked interest rates to an almost five-year high in March.
Read more: Kenya Inflation Beats Estimates as Food Prices Hit 13-Month Low
These are the contenders for the governor’s post:
Adan Abdulla Mohamed
Mohamed, 59, is a member of the president’s council of economic advisers. He previously served in former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s cabinet as secretary for industrialization and enterprise development, and was previously the chief executive officer of Barclays Bank Kenya. He holds a bachelor of commerce degree from the University of Nairobi and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Dorcas Muthoni Mutonyi
Mutonyi, 46, is the former head of IT research and innovation at Equity Group Holdings Plc, one of Kenya’s largest lenders. A banker for nearly two decades, she also held various roles at Standard Chartered and National Bank of Kenya. She has a bachelor of commerce degree from Daystar University and an MBA from the University of Baltimore.
Edward Sambili
Sambili, 65, is an adviser at the ministry that oversees cooperatives and small businesses. He served as the central bank’s deputy governor from 2001 to 2005. He was appointed permanent secretary in the ministry of planning in the same year, and was chairman of the Kenya Revenue Authority from 2016 to 2020. He holds an economics doctorate from the University of Lancaster.
Haron Sirima
Sirima, 60, is the director-general of the Public Debt Management Office at the National Treasury. He joined the central bank as a graduate trainee in 1986 and rose through the ranks to become deputy governor, a post he held from 2011 to 2015, when his term ended. He holds a masters degree in economics from the University of Manchester and a PhD in entrepreneurship from the Kenyatta University.
Kamau Thugge
Thugge, 57, is a member of Ruto’s council of economic advisers. He served as the Treasury’s principal secretary from 2013 until 2019, when he was arrested following a probe into alleged irregular payments for a dam construction project. Thugge denied wrongdoing and the public prosecutor withdrew charges against him. He previously worked as a senior economist and deputy division chief at the International Monetary Fund. Thugge obtained a masters degree and a PhD in economics from Johns Hopkins University.
Nancy Asiko Onyango
Onyango has served as a director in the IMF’s office of internal audit and inspection since February 2018. She earlier held roles at accounting firms PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young. She has a bachelors degree in commerce and an MBA from the University of Nairobi, and a doctorate in business administration from the United States International University Africa.