Kenya Airways (KQ) has appointed businessman Kiprono Kittony as chairman of its board, with economist David Ndii among three new directors joining the airline’s governing body amid plans to sell it to a strategic investor for Sh258 billion.
The national carrier announced on Thursday that Mr Kittony will serve as chairman and independent non-executive director, while Dr Ndii and two others will sit on the board as non-executive directors effective March 5.
This comes as the government prepares to float an expression of interest (EOI) to tap a strategic investor who is expected to inject up to Sh258 billion to revitalise the struggling carrier.
Mr Kittony, who is also the chairman of the board of the Nairobi Securities Exchange, takes over from Michael Joseph, who retired from the KQ board last year after a decade at the helm.
“Renowned for revitalising the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce & Industry, he has also chaired and co-founded several major organisations, including CreditInfo CRB Kenya, Mtech Limited, Betway Kenya, and Radio Africa Group,” said KQ company secretary Habil Aswani in a public announcement.
New directors
Also joining the board are corporate executive Chris Diaz, who formerly worked as the airline's marketing director, and finance scholar Prof Winnie Iminza Nyamute, both as independent non-executive directors.
The appointments come as Kenya Airways continues efforts to strengthen its governance and strategic direction amid accumulated losses that were exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic disruptions and more recently by the conflict involving Iran, Israel and the United States.
Mr Kittony, a prominent figure in Kenya’s business community, also holds advisory and board roles internationally, including advising the Amsterdam-based private equity fund IFHA and vice-chairman of the World Chambers Federation in Paris, where he represents Africa.
He holds two Bachelor’s degrees in Commerce and Law from the University of Nairobi, and a Master of Business Administration from the United States International University and Columbia University.
Dr Ndii, meanwhile, is the chairperson of the President’s Council of Economic Advisors and serves as the principal economic policy adviser to President William Ruto. An economist with more than three decades of experience, he has held roles at the World Bank and Equity Bank and has consulted for international financial institutions.
He has been a key figure in the current administration’s fiscal policies, including the sale and restructuring of key State-owned enterprises and contracts such as the importation of petroleum products.
The other appointees bring experience in corporate governance, finance and strategy. Mr Diaz is a business leader with more than 30 years of experience in strategy and integrated business solutions and currently chairs Adili Group, while also serving as a director at ALN Africa and Middle East, and Bidco Africa.
Prof Nyamute is an associate professor of finance and accounting at the University of Nairobi with more than three decades of academic and professional experience. She has served on several corporate boards, including the Nairobi Securities Exchange, Sameer Africa and Family Bank.
The new appointees will expand the KQ board to 13 members, but the company has not clarified whether they will take up new seats or will replace some current members of the board.
They come just over a month after Esther Koimett was appointed to the board, to represent KQ Lenders Company 2017 Limited, a consortium of local banks whose loans to the carrier were converted into equity in 2017.
KQ has had two vacancies at its top leadership level, following the retirement of Michael Joseph as board chair, and Allan Kilavuka as CEO in December 2025. It is yet to appoint a new CEO.
