Meet CS Kagwe's Wife, Uhuru's Advisor

Anne Wanjiku Mutahi, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe's wife and special advisor to President Uhuru Kenyatta
Anne Wanjiku Mutahi, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe's wife and special advisor to President Uhuru Kenyatta
File

Health CS Mutahi Kagwe frontline fight against Coronavirus (Covid-19) placed him in the spotlight, raising his profile as a technocrat and one of Kenya's most revered Cabinet Secretaries.

And as usual, his success factor is compounded by the fact that a powerful woman is always by his side. One who has also shaped her name in Kenyan's Industrial and Technology field.

Anne Wanjiku Mutahi is the daughter of the late prominent  Cabinet Minister, John Michuki, and a special advisor to President Uhuru Kenyatta on matters concerning Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe addresses the media at Mbagathi District Hospital on Friday, March 6, 2020
Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe addresses the media at Mbagathi District Hospital on Friday, March 6, 2020
Simon Kiragu
Kenyans.co.ke

Wanjiku's career spans over a decade in various notable firms in the financial sector, holding top positions. 

"I am committed to financial services that promote economic development and I'm passionate about empowering people to collectively improve their lives. My dream is a Kenya with less than five per cent living in poverty," she describes herself.

In past years, she served as the chairperson for the Women Enterprise Fund, Standard Chartered Bank Kenya and Association of Micro Finance Institutions, as well as Chief Executive Officer at Jitegemee Trust Limited.

Her position as Vice-Chairperson SME unit at Citibank Kenya for 6 years, from July 1997 to October 2003 enabled her to innovate her company, Soko Letu Limited which focuses on creating and overseeing SME retail outlets.

In 2010, she partnered with other stakeholders and launched Biashara Factors Limited, which she currently serves as executive director. This firm provides trade services to SMEs. She has also served at TransCentury and Old Mutual Life Assurance Company. 

Wanjiku hatched a way to balance her private businesses and her work during her youthful days, and later on, started mentoring the youth. 

“While in my 30s, I had a potato business and I would be on the road to Nyeri every morning by 4 a.m. I’d wear a headscarf and gumboots for the trip there but on the way back to Nairobi I’d stop somewhere along the way to comb my hair and put on my high heels.

“I also remember this one young woman I mentored and she was so sure about her goals. She wanted to get a new job, get married and start a family all within one year and she ended up doing all of those things in just one year. What I learned from her is that you’ve got to be specific about the targets you want to achieve. This is very important in any career as well," Wanjiku marvelled, as quoted by a local daily.

The financial expert holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Business/Commerce from the University of Cape Town and an undergraduate degree from the Duquesne University of The Holy Spirit.

Wanjiku and Kagwe are blessed with four children.

Anne Wanjiku Mutahi, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe's wife and special advisor to President Uhuru Kenyatta
Anne Wanjiku Mutahi, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe's wife and special advisor to President Uhuru Kenyatta
File
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