Our Team
Board of Directors
Mary Ngige
Chairperson
Chairperson
Mary Ngige
Mary has over 20 years accounting experience and practice. She has served in various boards and board committee meetings for both private and publicly listed companies. Mary is a qualified accountant of many years and Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting. She is currently in her final stages of Masters of Business Administration at the Strathmore Business schools. She has audited many firms while at Deloitte and Touche and held directorships at various companies which include CMC Group, Kenindia Assurance Limited. Mary currents sits in the Boards of Centum Investment Company Plc, Platcorp Holdings Limited, Platinum Credit Limited and Premier Kenya where she chairs the Audit and Risk Board Committees.
Allan Walmsley
Director
Director
Allan Walmsley
Allan is a chartered accountant and joined the board in 2005. He was the Managing Director of Sameer Africa Limited. He has previously worked with PriceWaterhouse Coopers in Zimbabwe, Sun Internal in South Africa, Lonrho Plc UK, Lonrho Motors East Africa, First Alliance Pensions and Benefits Nigeria and Royal Exchange PLC in Nigeria, among others. He has also done consultancy work for a number of leading South African companies regarding expansion of their activities into other African Countries.
Jeremy Awori
Director
Director
Jeremy Awori
Jeremy is the CEO / Managing Director at Absa Bank Kenya Ltd. Prior to joining Absa he has held various positions within Standard Chartered Bank including being the CEO of Standard Chartered Bank Tanzania (2008 to 2012), Regional Sales Director, SCB West Region – Middle East, South Asia and Africa, handling 23 countries (2005 to 2008). He was also the Head of Consumer Banking, SCB UAE (2003 to 2005). Other positions held include being the Head of Consumer Banking and Executive Director for the Bank in Kenya & East Africa. He has also lived and worked in the in UK, North America and Asia.
Dr. Laila Macharia
Senior Director
Senior Director
Dr. Laila Macharia
Dr. Laila joined the Board in August 2014. She is the Chief Executive Officer of Africa Metro (formerly Scion Real), a pan-African investment company focused on urban development, and the current Vice Chairman of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA). She holds a Doctorate in Law from Stanford Law School, a Masters in Law from Stanford Law School, a Masters in Law from Cornell Law School, a Bachelor of Law from Cornell Law School and a Bachelor of Arts (BA) from the University of Oregon. She is a lawyer by training with experience in corporate finance transactions structuring.
Nazim Mahmood
Director
Director
Nazim Mahmood
Nazim joined the company in May 2021. has over 22 years of international experience spanning across end to end Profit and Loss Management, Enterprise Risk and Credit risk management. He has in-depth knowledge of Retail and Wholesale banking portfolios, compliance standards, wealth management & managing high performance teams in the digital environment. He also has a global perspective of many sectors of the economy acquired through hands on experience in multinational businesses across Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. Over the years, Nazim has acquired significant people management experience by managing diverse, high performing teams and business restructuring and reorganizations. His key strengths include: sustaining independent views, analytical and problem-solving skills and critical thinking restorative skills. He has Masters in Business Administration (Corporate Finance) from Bentley College and Bachelors in Business Administration (Marketing & Research), University of Massachusetts (USA).
David Kabeberi
Director
Director
David Kabeberi
David qualified as a professional accountant in 1984, setting a yet unbroken record in awards for top marks in the national examinations. He has nearly 40 years of professional experience during which he has been involved in audit, accounting, due diligence, mergers and acquisitions, public and private share issue and placements, business and strategic planning and management, financial management structuring and obtaining finance, financial forecasting, business reviews, corporate recovery investigations, corporate taxation and statutory affairs. His engagements have been with a wide variety of large and small organisations in both the public and private sector across the spectrum of economic and industrial sectors. David has also served as a director and strategic executive to a number of companies in business and development.
Senior Management
Stephen Lokonyo
Managing Director & Principal Officer
Managing Director & Principal Officer
Stephen Lokonyo
Stephen joined First Assurance in June 2021 from UAP Insurance Tanzania Ltd where he was the Managing Directors. Prior to joining UAP, Stephen held the position of Chief Executive Officer at Britam Insurance (Tanzania) Limited since November 2015. He began his career in Underwriting at Heritage Insurance Company Limited in Kenya in 1995 where he served until moving to UAP Insurance Company Limited (Kenya) in 2004 as an Underwriting Manager (Corporate Business).
He later moved to AIG Kenya Insurance Company Limited in 2010 as the Profit Centre Manager (Property, Energy & Marine) for two years. Thereafter, he joined REAL Insurance Kenya Limited as the Senior Underwriting Manager and later promoted to the Head of Broker Relationship in January 2015 after the merger of Real Insurance and Britam General. He was then transferred to Tanzania to take up the position of Chief Executive Officer.
Following the successful acquisition by Britam Holdings in 2014, Stephen led the rebranding of Real Insurance Tanzania to Britam Insurance in 2016. He has also played a significant role in the turnaround of the business from a loss position in 2015 to consistent profitability since 2016. Stephen is an Associate of the Chartered Insurance Institute (ACII – UK) with 24 years’ experience in leading insurance companies in East Africa and over 10 years in Executive Management. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Commerce (Insurance option)
Johannes Kitaka
Chief Operations Officer
Chief Operations Officer
Johannes Kitaka
Dr. Kitaka joined the company in February 2018. Prior to this role, he served as the Chief Finance Officer (CFO) in Jubilee and AIG insurance companies in addition to General Manager, Finance and Sales in Isuzu Motors East Africa Limited, a motor assembly and manufacturing enterprise. He has a well – seasoned Finance professional for over 28 years, with a wealth of experience in multinational companies’ set-ups in insurance, investments and motor industry with wider exposure to East Africa, Middle East, Brazil, South Africa, USA and Egypt. Johannes largely specializes in Finance and Accounting, strategic management, Insurance Industry Sustainability and lately Operations Management, Governance, Compliance, Controls and Agility. He has a PHD in Business Administration, Banking and Finance from Dedan Kimathi University, Master in Business Administration, specializing in Business Finance, a minor in Strategic Management and a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the University of Nairobi. Johannes is a CPA (K), CPS (K) and a member of both ICPAK and ICPSK. He currently sits in the AKI Motor Pool Committee among other leadership roles.
Reuben Bundi
Chief Finance Officer
Chief Finance Officer
Reuben Bundi
Reuben Bundi joined First Assurance as the Chief Finance Officer in August 2019. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Maseno University. He is also a practicing member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Reuben has 14 years all round experience in audit, finance and accounting, staff‑ training, consultancy, taxation and internal audit. Reuben started his career with Deloitte and Touché, a leading international professional services firm, where he worked for a total of 10 years. He held various position within the Audit and Outsourcing department. He has also worked a Business performance manager at UAP insurance, a Senior Internal Audit Manager at CIC Group and at Airworks Kenya Limited as the Chief Finance Officer.
Paul Sewe
Head of Claims
Head of Claims
Paul Sewe
Paul joined the company as the Head of Claims in February 2018. Prior to this appointment, Paul served as a Head of Claims with Jubilee Insurance -Tanzania for four years, Britam Kenya and Rwanda where he grew his career from an Accounts Assistant to Underwriting and Claims Manager. He has valuable experience in Insurance branch operations, life assurance management and general insurance operations. Paul has a Bachelor of commerce (Insurance Option) from University of Nairobi, Advanced Diploma in Insurance (ACII) and a Fellow Life Management Institute (FLMI).
Hilary Njuki Mwangi
Manager – Medical Insurance Business
Manager – Medical Insurance Business
Hilary Njuki Mwangi
Hilary is an Actuary and a member of the Actuarial profession (UK). He holds a BSc in Actuarial Science from the University of Nairobi and an Executive MBA from USIU Chandaria School of Business. He has extensive insurance experience in specialist areas of pricing, analysis, reserving and product design and has worked for several top insurers locally. He joined the company in 2010 and has successfully spearheaded the growth strategy of the Medical Insurance division turning First Assurance into one of the leading Medical Insurance underwriters in the country.
Vincent Ochieng
Head of Retail
Head of Retail
Vincent Ochieng
Vincent joined the Company in August 2016. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Insurance and Risk Management from Egerton University. He also holds Advanced Diploma in Insurance (ACII) from the Chartered Institute of Insurance (UK). He has a wealth of experience in General Insurance business as well as Banc assurance. Prior to joining the Company he worked for various companies including Co-operative Bank and CIC insurance Group.
Emily Gachaiya
Human Resource Business Partner
Human Resource Business Partner
Emily Gachaiya
Emily joined First Assurance in April 2020. She holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration, Human Resource option and a Masters in Human Resource Management from KCA University. She is a member of the Institute of Human Resource Management. Emily has 10 years of progressive experience in the insurance industry. She has notable experience in strategic human resource planning, performance management, talent management, compliance, employee benefits, employee relations, compensation, payroll, training and development. She is Passionate about talent and organizational effectiveness. Prior to joining the company, she worked with Minet Kenya Insurance brokers.
Elias Kariuki
Risk Manager
Risk Manager
Elias Kariuki
Elias joined the company in March 2014. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Accounting from Kenyatta University. He is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), a Certified Information System Auditor (CISA) and a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). He is also a qualified Quality Management Systems Auditor. He is a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) and a member of the Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA). Elias has a wealth of experience in audit and risk management as well as management of Quality Management Systems. His main areas of interests are audit, risk, governance, information systems control and quality system reviews. Prior to joining the Company, He previously worked for Kenya Orient Insurance limited as Senior Auditor.
Anne Njiru
Head of Business Development
Head of Business Development
Anne Njiru
Anne is a well-seasoned Insurance professional for over 23 years with a wealth of experience in Business development. Prior to this role, Anne served as a Manager Business Development at Heritage Insurance Company Kenya. She holds a Degree in Land Economics and is a Chartered Insurer.
Denis Adem
IT Manager
IT Manager
Denis Adem
Denis joined First Assurance in October 2007. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Technology from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and is an Oracle Certified Associate (OCA). He has a wide experience of over 13 years in systems analysis, requirement analysis, business intelligence, systems implementation and project management. Prior to joining First Assurance he worked with Simba Technology as senior systems analyst and 3i InfoTech as implementation consultant and reports developer. He has spearheaded IT infrastructure and system upgrades that have greatly improved communication, branch connectivity and service delivery.
Janerose Gitonga
Legal Manager
Legal Manager
Janerose Gitonga
Janerose joined the company in November 2008. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Law (LLB), from the University of Nairobi and a Diploma in legal studies from the Kenya School of Law. She is a lawyer and an advocate of the High Court of Kenya. She is currently pursuing a course in Arbitration with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and looks forward to parties in a dispute engaging in alternative dispute resolution more than litigation. She is an accomplished lawyer in insurance legal liabilities with more than 15 years of experience in the insurance industry and has worked previously as an insurance litigation advocate in a leading law firm.
Jacob Sila
MLRO/Compliance Officer
MLRO/Compliance Officer
Jacob Sila
Jacob joined the company in December 2016. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from Moi University. He also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Management Practice and Regulatory Compliance from University of Cape Town and a Certificate in Compliance from University of Cambridge Judge Business School. Jacob has a wealth of experience in Financial Crime Management, Regulatory Compliance, Compliance Audit and Risk Management. Before joining as Money Laundering Reporting Officer, Jacob was Compliance Monitoring Manager for Absa Bank of Kenya.
Mary Opiyo
Head of Governance & Controls
Head of Governance & Controls
Mary Opiyo
Mary joined the company in May 2019. She has a wealth of experience in Risk Analytics, Risk Assessment & Advisory, Internal Controls, Audit, Business Resilience, Lean Process & Workflow Design, Project Management, Digitization and Robotics Automation. Prior to joining the company, she held Governance roles at Absa Bank Kenya specifically Process Design, Rigor & Compliance, Quality Assurance, Governance & Controls and Project Management. She has Experience in International & Local Payments Policies, Transaction Operations, Debt Collections & Recoveries, E-Channels Operations, Credit Risk, Customer On-boarding and Financial Crime Operations. She is a Professional Member of the Institute of Risk Management Kenya (IRMK) and holds a BSc in Construction Economics & Quantity Surveying from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa.
Stephen Simiyu
Branch Manager – Mombasa
Branch Manager – Mombasa
Stephen Simiyu
Stephen joined the company in October 2017 and holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Kenya Methodist University and also holds a Diploma in Business Management (KIM). He also holds an advanced diploma in insurance from the Insurance Institute of London (ACII) and is an Associate member of Kenya Institute of Management (KIM). He has over 9 years’ experience in insurance industry having worked with various underwriters.
Isaac Nguono Joel
Branch Manager – Kisumu
Branch Manager – Kisumu
Isaac Nguono Joel
Isaac joined First Assurance in March 2017. He is a Bachelor of Business Management (Marketing Option) from Moi University. He also holds a Diploma in Marketing and is currently pursuing Diploma in Insurance (IIK). He has over 15 years experience in the insurance industry gained from several underwriters and brokerage firms in Kenya.
Stephen Wanyonyi
Underwriting Manager
Underwriting Manager
Stephen Wanyonyi
Stephen Wanyonyi is an insurance professional with over 10 years experience in the insurance industry, having worked for several insurance companies. He holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce (Finance – Option) from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). He’s an Associate member of the Insurance Institute of Kenya (AIIK) in addition to a Certificate of Proficiency in Reinsurance from Zep-Re Academy. Stephen has attended training and seminars in Insurance and Reinsurance, he holds several Transformative leadership certifications by Training Solutions. He is currently an active member of the Accident & Liability Technical committee at Association of Kenya Insurers (AKI)
Shifrine Simwa
Customer Service Manager
Customer Service Manager
Shifrine Simwa
Shifrine joined First Assurance on 9th November 2020. He has been a Customer service professional for over 17 years having working in various roles across several institutions. He has over the years specialized in Client service, sales generation, stakeholder relationships, and training. He has a passion for developing competitive, world-class customer experience solutions that support easy access and professional experience. Shifrine holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Nairobi, is A Fellow of Life Management Association (FLMI), a Professional of Customer Service (PCS), is an Underwriter (UND), and also holds a certificate in Advanced Customer Service Management. He is a member of the Institute of Customer Experience (ICX), The Insurance Institute of Kenya (IIK), and the Life office management Association (LOMA). He has championed end to end set-up and management of Call/service centers, including strategy, systems, process flow formulation, service operation routines, standard operating procedures, governance, compliance and controls.
Jane Muthee
Branch Manager, Nakuru
Branch Manager, Nakuru
Jane Muthee
Jane Muthee joined the company on 26th September 2019. She holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor’s Degree in Education (Science) from the University of Nairobi. She also holds Advanced Diploma in Insurance (ACII) from the Chartered Institute of Insurance (UK) and is an Associate member of The Insurance institute of Kenya (AIIK).
Jane has 11 years all round experience in General Insurance business as well as Banc assurance. Prior to joining the Company she worked for Heritage Insurance Company and UAP-Old Mutual Group.
Faith Mwenda
Branch Manager, CBD
Branch Manager, CBD
Faith Mwenda
Faith joined First Assurance Kenya Limited on 1st September 2020, she holds a Bachelor’s Degree-Finance from Jomo Kenyatta University of Science and Technology.
Faith has over 15 years of experience in Insurance having worked with various dynamic Insurance brokers and underwriters.
Prior to joining the company, Faith worked at Kenya Orient Insurance Limited as a Branch Manager
Daniel Mwangi
Bancassurance Manager
Bancassurance Manager
Daniel Mwangi
Daniel is a well- seasoned insurance practitioner with over 12 years’ experience in the industry.
He started off at Minet Insurance Brokers Ltd where he worked for 4years before proceeding to Zamara Insurance Brokers and thereafter a short a stint at Saham Assurance.
He joined UAP in 2016 as the Bancassurance Manager where he transformed Bancassurance business leading to strategic, sustainable and profitable growth of the channel.
He holds a degree in Business Management from Edinburgh Napier University, Diploma in Insurance from AIIK and Certificate Course in Arbitration CIArb. He has also undertaken a senior management course at Strathmore University under the Aspire Leadership Program.