CFO East Africa

Stephen Maina has been appointed managing director of Tropikal Brands Africa , effective August 2026. He boasts over 25 years of experience across healthcare, insurance, FMCG, and manufacturing, with executive leadership roles in Kenya, Uganda, and the UK. Stephen began his career at PwC in London as a consultant from August 1996, spending two years on systems and process assurance before returning to East Africa.

Frederick Nshekanabo, CFO at CRDB Bank, is among the nominees for the 2026 CFO East Africa Awards, having spent nearly three decades at one of Tanzania's largest banks. CRDB Bank CFO Fredrick Nshekanabo has been nominated for the 2026 CFO East Africa Awards. Fredrick has spent his entire career at CRDB Bank, joining in February 1999 as a bank officer.

Sixty percent of Kenya's population is under 35. They are the country's consumer base, its future workforce and its next generation of finance leaders. Winnie Waweru, finance director at Mastercard Foundation, wants to know why so few of the people with the power to change their circumstances are doing anything about it. "Considering they make up the majority of our consumer base and our current and future workforce, I kept asking where the young voices in the room were.

Liquid Kenya has joined CFO East Africa as a corporate member, bringing CFO Edgar Opata, head of financial planning and analysis James Kiguhi and head of performance management Victor Kabongo into the CFO East Africa community. The three finance leaders will take part in CFO summits in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda, as well as affiliated events in South Africa, including CFO Day, Executive Day and the Finance Indaba.

Most of what crosses Sam Njenga 's desk is measured in quarters, but a 90th anniversary demands a longer view. What arises is the question of what this business has done, decade after decade, that allows it to still be relevant. The answer is found in a pattern of choices, sometimes unfashionable, made by people who understand that they are stewards. When Sam talks about Car & General, he describes it as a company that has repeatedly adjusted to the world around it.

Dr Daniel Kinyua has created his own yardstick for running. The Madison group CFO has built his running discipline around the willingness to push himself beyond what has become comfortable. He started running in 2016 while working at NCBA after deciding he needed a sport that would help him get into shape. Eventually, it became a decade-long habit. "Basically then I was just looking for fitness.

HEVA Fund has joined CFO East Africa as a corporate member, with finance director Dr Karimi Ngeera gaining full access to the community's events and networks, alongside Nehemia Kabugi, finance manager, and Robert Gatimu, senior finance officer. They will attend CFO summits across Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda, as well as affiliated events in South Africa, including CFO Day, Executive Day and the Finance Indaba.

Reliance Insurance Tanzania CFO Flora Makule has been nominated for the 2026 CFO East Africa Awards. Since joining Reliance Insurance in May 2018, Flora has risen to CFO, overseeing financial management and strategic planning. During her tenure, she has championed the implementation of IFRS 9 and helped navigate the transition to IFRS 17. She also facilitated the acquisition of bancassurance business from multiple banks, which now accounts for 40 percent of total company revenue.

People in finance are often a mystery to many, and James Mwenda understands this better than most. He is changing this, as he believes that finance today is about strategy and communication rather than simply balancing books and reporting numbers. "There's a sort of mystery in what people in finance do, and it stems from the fact that this group of professionals is usually not very good at communicating what they do.

Sustainability risks becoming a language understood by finance teams but lost on everyone else, according to Stanbic Bank Uganda CEO Mumba Kalifungwa. Speaking at the CFO East Africa Sustainability Summit in Kampala, he said many organisations make sustainability too complicated. He argued that businesses need to explain it in simple terms if they want employees and stakeholders to get behind it.