Kenyan Appointed Vice President of AfDB

AfDB Bank's Wambui Gichuri gives a talk at a past forum.
AfDB Bank's Wambui Gichuri gives a talk at a past forum.
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Kenya's Wambui Gichuri was on Saturday, July 4, appointed as an interim vice president in the Africa Development Bank.

In a statement shared by the bank, Gichuri was elevated to serve as the acting Vice President of Agriculture, Human and Social Development, effective July 5, 2020.

Since joining the institution in March 2018, as the director of Water Development and Sanitation, she oversaw the Bank’s water sector program of over Ksh479 billion that covered 44 countries and multinational projects.

AfDB President, Akinwumi Adesina, congratulated her for the appointment and noted that the docket Gichuri was assuming played a pivotal role in the bank's success.

AfDB headquarters in Abidjan, Ivory Coast
AfDB headquarters in Abidjan, Ivory Coast
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“I am very pleased that Wambui agreed to step into this role as acting Vice President. The Vice Presidency Complex on Agriculture, Human and Social Development has some of our largest programs and flagship initiatives.

"With her extensive experience, leadership, people management skills, and strong execution capacity, I am confident that she will help strengthen the team and accelerate execution on critical programs and initiatives," stated Adesina.

Up until her appointment, Gichuri's job included supervising two divisions including the Water Development, Coordination and Partnerships, and Water Security and Sanitation divisions, as well as the African Water Facility division, a project preparation facility. 

She also led the development and coordination of the technical program, managed the department’s human resources and budget, and the development of extensive partnership activities.

Her leadership role included water sector policy dialogue, strategy and business development, and spearheading innovations.

Prior to her 2018 appointment, she had served at the World Bank for 20 years in various capacities.

She spent 17 years of that period in water resources management, supply, sanitation, irrigation and drainage, which saw her visit Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean on assignments.

Wambui holds a Master’s Degree in Economics from the University of Nairobi, Kenya (1988); a Bachelor of Philosophy degree in Economics (1986) and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Sociology from (1983) from the same university.

AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina.
AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina.
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