NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 12 – Former Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) Governor Patrick Njoroge says he initially wanted to become an engineer before changing his career path to economics.
Njoroge, who studied at Mang’u High School, was admitted to the University of Nairobi to pursue electrical engineering after completing his secondary education.
However, he later realised engineering was not what he wanted to pursue and switched to economics, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree before completing a master’s degree and doctorate in the same field.
“I always wanted to be an engineer, and that was a time when we were all in the sciences. I was actually accepted to go into electrical engineering at the University of Nairobi. But during that period, I kind of realized that’s not what I wanted to do, and that’s when I changed and ended up doing arts,” Njoroge said during the CBK Governor Series.
“So I studied Bachelor of Arts in Economics, did a master’s at the University of Nairobi and then eventually ended up doing my doctorate. I came back, did two years at the Ministry of Finance, and then eventually got a job at the [unclear]. I did that for 20 years.”
After his studies, Njoroge joined the Ministry of Planning as a Planning Officer before moving to the Ministry of Finance as an Economist.
He later joined the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington, DC, where he worked for more than 20 years and rose to become an advisor to the Deputy Managing Director in 2012.
In 2015, Njoroge applied for the position of CBK Governor while still working at the IMF.
“I and others applied, and then there was a whole bunch of interviews, including with the Public Service Commission. This was quite public, first time, I think, in CBK’s history where this process was followed from start to end. I had come to Kenya to interview,” he said.
“I still had my job in Washington with the IMF, but then it became clear that the process was going to happen very quickly. And sure enough, very quickly, the President chose my name and sent this name to Parliament for vetting.”
Njoroge said his nomination generated interest because he had spent much of his career outside Kenya and had limited experience in the country’s banking sector.
“…and that’s when everybody sort of got excited because, who is this person? He’s coming in from abroad. Does he know anything? Things took a turn that most people would not have planned for.”
