Ndiritu Muriithi is a Kenyan politician and former Governor of Laikipia County. He was elected in the August 2017 general elections as an Independent Candidate after he failed to clinch the Jubilee Alliance Party nominations ticket. He was elected as the second governor of Laikipia County through an independent ticket. He is currently the Chairperson of the Kenya Revenue Authority having being sworn in on 30th December, 2024. [1]
He went to Shamanei Primary School then went to Kagumo High School and then the prestigious Alliance High School. In 1990 he graduated with a degree in economics and finance from St. Francis Xavier University in Canada. He attended the University of Technology, Sydney in 1994 and 1995 pursuing a master's degree in project management. [2]
Muriithi is an economist and financial markets expert with over 24 years’ experience in leadership and management in Kenya, South Africa, Canada and Australia. Muriithi has spearheaded numerous financial market strengthening initiatives across African countries covering establishment of credit sharing and scoring institutions, improved bond market function, expansion of mortgage markets, and even growth of women-owned enterprises. He was primarily involved in the design and implementation of these programs and contributed substantively to the development of financial markets that provide required services to many nations.
Muriithi served as a Member of Parliament representing Laikipia west and assistant minister for industrialization between 2007 and 2013, in the government of Mwai Kibaki. He was involved in reforms to improve the environment for doing business, and improving incentives to promote investments. He was also involved in the development of policy and law related to finance and economics such as legislation governing establishment of credit bureau, interest rates, taxation and other fiscal measures. Scandal has dogged him over his handling of Ngarua Millers in Laikipia which collapsed during his term as an assistant minister. As a Governor attempts to revive it has led to conflict with the community with allegations of his attempts to privatize a co-operative. He has also faced criticism over privatization of a community slaughter house to family business.
Muriithi's tenure as governor has been dogged by a succession of legal battles. [3] He additionally has experienced growth in regional influence since initiating the AMAYA Triangle Initiative, which seeks socio economic transformation of four pastoralist counties by pushing for adoption of feedlots and other modern technologies in livestock husbandry. Muriithi was instrumental in the drive to have the derelict Nairobi-Nanyuki and Gilgil-Nyahururu railway lines rehabilitated. He is the current finance, planning and economic affairs committee chairperson in the council of governors elected on 29/01/2021. Upon his election as Governor of Laikipia in 2017, Muriithi embarked on reforms of the county public service to make it professional and globally competitive. These efforts have been rewarded with unmatched growth of the county's own source revenue which has doubled since the 2016/2017 financial year. Muriithi is also credited with following through with the Smart Towns Initiative funded by the World Bank's Global Smart City Partnership Program (GSCP). [4] [5] [6] [7] in Key Laikipia towns. He also focused the county public service on enterprise development to bridge the gap between development and positive social change. Under his leadership, a number of local Small and Medium Enterprises underwent incubation under the Laikipia Innovation and Enterprise development Programme which he started in 2018 to nurture the SMEs to become manufacturers through increased production.
Muriithi lost the Laikipia Governorship to Joshua Irungu in the Kenya 2022 General Elections.
Muriithi, who is former president Kibaki's nephew, is married to Maria Mbeneka a seasoned lawyer.
The economy of Kenya is market-based with a few state enterprises. Kenya has an emerging market and is an averagely industrialised nation ahead of its East African peers. Currently a lower middle income nation, Kenya plans to be a newly industrialised nation by 2030. The major industries driving the Kenyan economy include financial services, agriculture, real estate, manufacturing, logistics, tourism, retail and energy. As of 2020, Kenya had the third largest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa, behind Nigeria and South Africa. Regionally, Kenya has had a stronger and more stable economy compared to its neighboring countries within East Africa. By 2023, the country had become Africa's largest start-up hub by both funds invested and number of projects.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is an international financial institution that offers investment, advisory, and asset-management services to encourage private-sector development in less developed countries. The IFC is a member of the World Bank Group and is headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States.
Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki was a Kenyan politician who served as the third President of Kenya from December 2002 until April 2013. He served in various leadership positions in Kenya's government including being the longest serving Member of Parliament (MP) in Kenya from 1963 to 2013.
Laikipia County is one of the 47 counties of Kenya, located on the Equator in the former Rift Valley Province. Laikipia is a cosmopolitan county and is listed as county number 31. The county has two major urban centres: Nanyuki to the southeast, and Nyahururu to the southwest. Its county government headquarters town is Rumuruti.
The U.S. African Development Foundation (USADF) is an independent U.S. government agency established by Congress in 1980 to invest directly in African grassroots enterprises and social entrepreneurs. USADF's investments aim to increase incomes, revenues, and jobs by promoting self-reliance and market-based solutions to poverty. USADF targets marginalized populations and underserved communities in the Sahel, Great Lakes, and the Horn of Africa. It partners with African governments, other U.S. government agencies, private corporations, and foundations to achieve transformative results.
Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) is the apex regulatory body for overall licensing and regulation of micro, small and medium enterprise finance companies in India. It is under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Finance, Government of India headquartered at Lucknow and having its offices all over the country.
Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development SA is a Swiss for-profit entity and international development finance institution which invests in countries of East Africa, West Africa, Central Asia, and South Asia. It is based in Geneva, Switzerland.
Kenya–United States relations are bilateral relations between the Republic of Kenya and the United States. Kenya and the United States have long been close allies and have enjoyed cordial relations since Kenya's independence. Relations became even closer after Kenya's democratic transition of 2002 and subsequent improvements in human rights.
Wycliffe Ambetsa Oparanya is a kenyan politician who is the current Cabinet Secretary for Cooperatives and MSMEs. He previously served as the governor of Kakamega County from 2013 to 2022.
Kenya Vision 2030 is a Kenyan development program, aiming to raise the average standard of living in Kenya to middle income by 2030. It was launched on 10 June 2008 by President Mwai Kibaki. Developed through "an all-inclusive and participatory stakeholder consultative process, involving Kenyans from all parts of the country," the Vision is based on three "pillars": Economic, Social, and Political. The Vision's adoption comes after the country's GDP growth went from 0.6% in 2002 to 6.1% in 2006, under Kibaki's Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment Creation (ERS).
Laila Macharia is a Kenyan lawyer, businesswoman, entrepreneur and angel investor based in Nairobi, Kenya's capital city. She sits on the boards of a number of national, regional and international enterprises, including (a) Africa Digital Media Group (b) Absa Bank Kenya Plc and (c) Centum Investments.
Amara M. Konneh is a Liberian national who serves as a Senator from Gbarpolu County, Western Liberia. Previously, he served as a senior advisor for Africa for the World Bank. In this role, he advised the World Bank on regional economic integration to create economic hubs for value chains and helped build strategic partnerships with Africa's regional economic commissions. Before that, he served as lead advisor for the Bank's engagements in countries affected by fragility, conflict, violence, and forced displacement with emphasis on Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, and Nigeria.
Anne Mumbi Waiguru, EGH, is the second Governor of Kirinyaga County in Kenya, who has been in office since 22 August 2017.
The Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) is a policy leadership alliance owned and led by member central banks and financial regulatory in developing countries with the objective of advancing financial inclusion.
The International Fertilizer Development Center is a science-based public international organization working to alleviate global hunger by introducing improved agricultural practices and fertilizer technologies to farmers and by linking farmers to markets. Headquartered in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, USA, the organization has projects in over 25 countries.
Joshua Wakahora Irungu is a Kenyan politician and community development specialist. He was appointed to the position of Chairperson of Water Services Regulatory Board (WASREB) in February 2019. He is the first and third governor of the County of Laikipia first serving from 2013 to 2017, representing the Jubilee Coalition party TNA and securing a return running on a UDA ticket in 2022.
HF Foundation is an East African foundation based in Nairobi, Kenya. Founded in 2012, HF Foundation is a non-profit subsidiary of the Housing Finance Company of Kenya.
Professor Elijah Bitange Ndemo, a global technocrat and currently serving as Kenya’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium and the European Union. Professor Ndemo is also an academic and newspaper columnist with the Kenyan newspaper Daily Nation and its sister publication, the Business Daily. He currently serves part-time as a Professor of Entrepreneurship at the University of Nairobi’s Business School. He teaches and researches entrepreneurship and research methods, with most of his research work being focused on ICT within small and medium enterprises, and their influence on economic development in Kenya. Previously served as the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information and Communication, from 2005 to 2013 under the former Kenyan president Mwai Kibaki. He was awarded the prestigious presidential Chief of the Burning Spear of Kenya (CBS) for his distinguished services in 2006.
The Rumuruti Solar Power Station is a 40 MW (54,000 hp) solar power plant under development in Kenya.
John Mwaniki is a politician and project management consultant, who served as the second Deputy Governor of Laikipia County, from 2017 to 2022, during the tenure of Ndiritu Muriithi. Prior to that he was the County secretary of the County Government of Laikipia from 2015 to 2016, during the first term of Governor Joshua Irungu, leaving the post after a protracted dispute with the then governor. While Deputy Governor he served as the chairperson of the Kenyan Deputy Governor's forum, being elected by his fellow deputy governors to the position in 2018