NAIROBI, March 11 (Reuters) – Kenya’s President William Ruto has appointed Susan Koech, a career banker who has also worked in top government posts, to be the second deputy governor of the central bank, his spokesperson said.
The post had been unoccupied for more than five years after Ruto’s predecessor failed to fill it when its previous occupant left. The bank has been led by Governor Patrick Njoroge and one deputy, Sheila M’mbijiwe.
Hussein Mohamed, Ruto’s spokesperson, said on Twitter late on Friday that Ruto had made the appointment, using a legal notice.
Njoroge’s and M’mbijiwe’s terms are to end in June, meaning Koech could serve as acting governor if their replacements are not appointed by then, legal experts have told Reuters.
The law requires the bank to have two deputies. Neither the central bank nor the previous government had ever commented on the vacancy for the second deputy.
Ruto made the appointment after Koech’s nomination was approved by the parliament, where his Kenya Kwanza political alliance has a majority.
Koech holds a doctorate in business from Kenya’s Moi University. She previously worked in various positions with the local top lender KCB Group for nearly two decades, before joining the government in 2018, where she worked as a senior official in two ministries.
