Why these people are fit to serve as next CBK governor

Wednesday’s exit of Prof Njuguna Ndung’u has left one of Kenya’s most important policy and regulatory institutions without an effective head, creating room for intense backroom lobbying and public speculation as to who will land the plum job.

As part of its contribution to the ongoing search for the next governor and its desire to help build strong institutions that promote Kenya’s social and economic advancement, the Business Daily — after consulting its wide network of industry players and policy makers — has come up with a shortlist of people it sees fit for the Central Bank job.

The newspaper is alive to the fact that the law clearly defines the process by which the office of the Central Bank governor is filled whenever the position falls vacant.

But it is within the same law that the paper seeks to make a contribution by bringing to the table candidates who have been picked purely on the basis of their technical competence and experience.

Our list of candidates includes Treasury principal secretary Dr Kamau Thugge, deputy CBK governor Dr Haron Sirima, Pan African economist at Standard Chartered’s head office Razia Khan, NIC Bank’s chief executive John Gachora, World Bank economist John Randa, and International Monetary Fund consultant Dr Rose Ngugi.

These are individuals with impressive academic credentials and decades of experience in global banking, economics research and management of national and international affairs that deserve to be part of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s shopping list.

Dr Haron Sirima

Out of the six candidates that the Business Daily has found worthy of consideration for the Central Bank’s top job, Dr Sirima has the unique advantage of incumbency that is backed by decades of hands-on experience in a career that started in 1986.

Incumbency comes with a number of advantages including continuity, institutional memory and insider knowledge.

Since October 2011, Dr Sirima has deputised Prof Ndung’u, gaining an all-round exposure to monetary policy, financial services regulation, fiscal agency and administrative functions of the CBK.

Prior to his appointment as deputy governor, Dr Sirima was the deputy director in charge of the national debt management department, which seconded him to the Treasury in that capacity.

He has been credited with crafting and implementing reforms in Kenya’s public debt management system when he served in the position.

Outside the CBK, Dr Sirima has served as a council member of Moi University and a director of Stanbic Bank Kenya, which later merged with CfC Bank in 2008 to form CfC Stanbic Bank.

He holds a PhD in Entrepreneurship from Kenyatta University, a Master’s degree in Economics from Manchester University and a B.A in Economics from University of Nairobi.

READ: Uhuru set to handpick CBK boss as Ndung’u term ends

Dr Kamau Thugge

Dr Thugge also brings significant familiarity in the workings of public finance as principal secretary at Treasury. He has previously worked in the Finance ministry as head of the fiscal and monetary affairs department and has served in other senior positions such as senior economic advisor and economic secretary.

Prior to joining the Treasury, Dr Thugge worked with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as a senior economist and deputy division chief.
The stint makes him a favourite of the Bretton Woods institutions that interact regularly with the Treasury and the CBK in matters of multilateral development financing as well as in monetary and fiscal policy formulation.

His appointment, however, risks drawing criticism from independence hawks who insist that the CBK governorship should be an independent office that dispenses its obligations objectively with little interference from external influence.
Dr Thugge has a PhD and a Master’s in Economics from John Hopkins University and a B.A in Economics from Colorado College.

Dr Rose Ngugi

Dr Rose Ngugi, a consultant, is the other candidate with links to the IMF where she works as an advisor on policy and engagement with member countries.

Part of that job involves working with the member countries to prepare statements that inform the organization’s engagement with the same.

Dr Ngugi brings to the table a strong academic background in economics, a subject she is widely published in and has taught at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

She holds a Phd in Financial Markets from Birmingham University’s School of Business and a Master’s in Economics from University of Nairobi.
Dr Ngugi, who lists Prof Ndung’u as her referee, got her BA in Economics from University of Nairobi.

As a woman, Dr Ngugi could get the backing of groups seeking greater gender parity in public appointments where the bulk of the top jobs have been taken by men since Mr Kenyatta came to power.

The highest position ever held by a woman at CBK is that of deputy governor through Jacinta Mwatela who left the bank in 2008 after declining President Mwai Kibaki’s attempt to “promote” her to the arid Lands ministry as a permanent secretary.

Ms Razia Khan

Ms Khan, arguably an outstanding commentator on African economies and consummate analyst, could also benefit from the push for greater gender balance in top echelons of government.

A UK resident, Ms Khan could become the second foreigner to be appointed governor if she replaces Prof Ndung’u.

Those who know her say she is a UK citizen but Ms Khan declined to comment on whether or not she holds Kenyan citizenship. The Constitution allows dual citizenship.

Dr Leon Baranski, a Pole, was the first CBK governor in 1966 when President Jomo Kenyatta appointed him to the post. All his seven successors have been Kenyan. The law does not preclude foreigners from taking the position.

Ms Khan advises Standard Chartered Plc’s executives and the bank’s clients — including central banks and multinationals — on African markets based on her up-to-date and detailed economic analysis of the continent.

She holds an MSc in Development and a BSc in Economics from the London School of Economics.

Dr John Randa

World Bank’s senior economist at the Nairobi office John Randa is one other candidate with strong credentials to replace Prof Ndung’u.

Mr Randa’s work has more recently focused on macro-fiscal work in Kenya and Somalia giving him deeper insights in the workings of the two economies.

Even more relevant for the job is the fact that Mr Randa took a break from the World Bank between 2008 and 2011 to work as a senior advisor to Prof Ndung’u at the Central Bank.

Prior to this stint, Mr Randa had served as a member of the Monetary Policy Advisory Committee for more than two years. He has multiple degrees from the University of Nairobi, the University of Warwick, and Oxford University.

Mr John Gachora

Mr Gachora, an unassuming, approachable but firm professional brings to the table extensive banking and regulatory experience he acquired working for some of the largest institutions on Wall Street and in South Africa.

Mr Gachora who is one of the few Kenyans to have headed a Wall Street company, has held executive roles at Bank of America and Credit Suisse First Boston — positions that allowed him to intensively interact with the rigors of America’s financial regulation.

That experience should be useful to the person who is set to sit at the top of an industry that is undergoing great shift and facing turbulence in a connected but tumultuous world.

Mr Gachora, who has an M.Eng in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he also got his BSc, also holds an MBA from Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.

In proposing these candidates, the Business Daily recognises that the appointment of the CBK governor remains a high-stakes game in which political connections, ethnicity and loyalty play a significant role in who eventually gets the job.

It remains to be seen who Mr Kenyatta will pick to steer the country’s monetary policy in the obviously difficult times ahead.

The looming appointment comes at a time when the job of central bankers is undergoing major changes, with Western countries now adding economic growth and unemployment reduction to their traditional duties of financial sector supervision and price stability.