Transforming banking in Kenya

Erastus holds an MA in Economics from the University of York and a B.A. (Hons) in Economics from the University of Nairobi. He was decorated by the President of the Republic of Kenya with the highest State commendation, “Elder of the Order of the Golden Heart” (EGH), in recognition of his contribution to national and regional development. He is the Chairperson of the Africa Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) and TradeMark East Africa. In January 2008, he was elected as Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission by the Heads of State and Governments of the 55 Member States of the African Union and was re-elected in July 2012. Previously, he served for 10 years as Secretary-General for the 21 Member States of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the first Regional Economic Community to establish a Free Trade Area. Prior to his regional and continental assignments, Erastus served in the Government of Kenya in various senior positions. He is also a board member of Brenthurst Foundation and Coalition for Dialogue on Africa (CoDA).

Dr. Muia holds a Ph.D. in Finance from the University of Nairobi, an MBA in Business and Administration and a degree in Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting Option) both from the University of Nairobi and a Diploma in Banking from the Kenya Institute of Banking. He is also a Fellow of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya and a Certified Public Secretary of Kenya.

He is a finance and public policy expert with vast experience in the private sector, government and academia. He has applied his qualifications as a lecturer, finance practitioner and policy leader. Between 2008-2022, he has held senior positions in the government of Kenya as the accounting officer in charge of the national policy think tank (National Economic and Social Council), coordinating the implementation of Kenya’s long term development framework (Vision 2030) and the Principal Secretary for the State Department for Planning and the National Treasury.

Dr. Muia’s wide experience in accounting and governance has seen him serve in various Boards in the capacity of a Board member, company secretary and Chairman. Some of the Boards include: Vision Delivery Board, Lapsset Corridor Development Authority, Central Bank of Kenya, East Africa Development Bank, Equity Bank Kenya Limited, Equity Investment Bank Limited and Action Aid among other entities. He has also served as Alternate Director of the World Bank and Africa Development Bank.

Adema graduated top of her class at USIU and went on to receive post-graduate degrees from some of the world’s top universities. As a Chevening Scholar, she obtained a Master of Business Administration from Oxford University, UK, and thereafter, a Master’s in Public Administration & Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School of Government, US, as an Edward S. Mason Fellow. She has worked mainly in the private sector for the past 23 years, starting out at Procter & Gamble East Africa where, at 27, she was the youngest regional CEO of a blue-chip company. She subsequently rose to senior leadership positions across Africa, Europe & North America. She has worked at UNEP as Chief of Brand and as a Senior Vice President Africa for a social impact organization. Most recently she worked in New York as a consultant with UN Women. She is currently the Managing Partner at C.Suite Africa, a management consultancy firm. Adema has received several nominations and recognitions. In 2012, she was recognized as a New Generation Leader by the African Leadership Network and has been honoured three times as “Top 40 Under 40” by Business Daily. In 2016, she was invited to the Paris-based Institut Choiseul’s as one of Africa’s top 100 emerging leaders. In 2018 she received the Distinguished Women’s Leadership Award and has recently been featured in The Journeys of Women Trailblazers in Kenya, a publication of the Kenya Government. She is passionate about Africa and sits on the Boards of several private and public sector organizations on the continent across various sectors.

Fredrick is a businessman with vast commercial experience. He is the Managing Director of Continental Business Systems, Presta and Office Equipment Limited, Mugumo Coffee Ltd, Online Mobile Com. Ltd and Summerdale Inn Ltd.

Prof. Waema holds a PhD degree in Strategic Management of Information Systems from the University of Cambridge (UK) and a Bachelors Honours Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from the University of Bath (UK). He is a Certified Formal Axiologist, Professional Driving Forces Analyst (CPDFA), Professional Behaviours Analyst (CPBA), Professional TriMetrix HD Analyst (CPHDA) and Professional Emotional Quotient Analyst (CPEQA). He is also a certified faculty for The Complete Leader Program and corporate governance trainer. He is a Professor of Information Systems in the School of Computing and Informatics in the University of Nairobi. He has consulted widely in Africa on ICT, strategy development and execution and has been involved in developing national policy and strategy documents relating to ICT and Science, Technology and Innovation. He has also been key in leading the innovation agenda of the University of Nairobi and has carried out innovation training for numerous organizations in Kenya. He sits in the Council of Strathmore University and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Carnegie Mellon University – Africa in Rwanda, which is the educational anchor tenant for the Kigali Innovation City in Rwanda. He is a Professional Member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), the largest association of IT professionals globally.

Sammy is the immediate former CEO of Deloitte East Africa. He has extensive audit and advisory experience, having served for 38 years in various audit roles and has contributed to the development of the accounting profession in East, Central and Southern Africa through past roles; including as Chair of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya and President of the then East, Central and Southern Africa Federation of Accountants (ECSAFA), which he also represented in the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). Sammy holds a Bachelor of Commerce, Accounting Option (First Class Honors) from the University of Nairobi and is a Fellow of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (FCPA), a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (FCA), Institute of Certified Public Secretaries of Kenya. He also obtained training on Arbitration and Mediation at the International Law Institute, George Town University, Washington DC. He is a Non-Executive Director at British American Tobacco Kenya PLC and a Director at Jadala Investments Ltd.

Prof. Gideon Maina is currently the Vice Chancellor of Pioneer International University (PIU), a position he has held since 2014. Prof. Gideon holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Maseno University, an MA in Political Science, and International Law from The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) and a PhD in Political Science/International Law from University of Cape Town, South Africa..

He is scholar in Political Science and International Law with over 17 years of academic research, institutional and administrative expertise in local and international institutions, boards, and task teams. He is a great mentor, an institutional builder, an organisational change strategist and a transformative leadership coach. Prof. Gideon has served in top management positions of regional universities as a Dean and later DVC students’ affairs-Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA), acting Vice-Chancellor at Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Vice Chancellor of Pioneer International University (PIU), President of Rotary international and Director at Africa Policy Institute Resources and Environmental Governance Programme. Prof Gideon is the current Chair of the Alliance High School Parents Association. .

Currently, he is a consultant on governance, arbitration, bilateral and multilateral negotiations, foreign policy, International Humanitarian Law at the Kenya Foreign Service Institute, the International Peace Support Training Centre (IPSTC) and the Kenya delegation of ICRC. He is a key consultant at the International Trade Centre, a UN agency that deals with trade enhancement across the globe. Prof. Gideon is also is a member of globethics.net, an organisation that works to equip individuals and institutions for ethical thinking, decision making and policy engagement from a cross-cultural and global perspectives.

Moses has 22 years of deep and broad experience in delivering sustainable strategic value for organizations throughout his consulting career.

Before joining Equity Group, Mr Nyabanda was the Managing Director and Country Senior Partner for PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in Rwanda and a member of PwC Eastern Africa leadership team. He has a proven track record of leading effective teams, strategic planning, driving business growth and delivering impactful solutions to businesses and governments in Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, and the United Kingdom. He has worked closely with Executive Teams, Boards of Directors, and Senior Government officials to co-create trusted solutions to business challenges and has over the years developed trusted relationships and networks across different markets.

While at PwC, he was responsible for driving operational efficiency including resource planning, digital transformation, innovation, and cost management at PwC Eastern Africa. At Equity Group, Mr Nyabanda is a key member of the executive team who has demonstrated commitment to the Group's corporate philosophies and customer value creation. Throughout his career, Mr. Nyabanda has distinguished himself as a disciplined and thorough professional, demonstrating exceptional leadership in promoting robust control environments and productivity.

Daniel holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Actuarial Science from the Jomo Kenyatta University, and a Diploma in Management Information Science from the Kenya School of Management Studies. He is currently the Head of Treasury at Equity Bank Kenya Limited and has worked with the Bank for over 14 years, in multiple roles spanning Insurance and Treasury.

Dorcas holds a Doctor of Business Administration in Strategic Management from United States International University, Master of Business Administration in Human Resources Management from The University of Nairobi and a Bachelor of Education in Business Studies from Kenyatta University. She is a seasoned professional with over 15 years’ experience, and has worked in various sectors such as Healthcare, NGO, IT, Government and Banking. Dorcas joined Equity in 2021.