Microfinance Regulatory Authority gets substantive executive director

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Edith Namugga Tusuubira has been named the substantive Executive Director of the Uganda Microfinance Regulatory Authority.

The authority is a government agency mandated to regulate license and supervise tier 4 microfinance institutions and money lenders in Uganda. These include Savings and Credit Cooperatives –SACCOs, Non-deposit taking microfinance institutions, Self-Help groups and Community based microfinance institutions.

The agency has been operating under the guidance of Elly Avu Biliku, the interim Executive Director who was seconded from the Ministry of Finance to kick start the establishment of the Authority, which commenced operations in July 2017.

The UMRA Board chaired by Jacqueline Mbabazi has now approved the appointment of Edith Namugga Tusuubira as the substantive Executive Director to take over from Biliku, who will now join the Ministry of Trade Industry and Cooperatives as an Assistant Commissioner. Tusuubira has officially assumed office.

Tusuubira possesses over 20 years of experience in the field of financial, investment, risk analysis and project management, 15 years of which are senior management responsibilities. She has most recently worked as Country Manager of Oikocredit, an international financial investment organization where she was at the helm of all country operations, and initiatives for 13 years.

She managed the credit, equity, guarantee and capacity building partnerships which also included packages for urban, and rural dwellers, through the financing of microfinance institutions and SACCOs. She has managed a portfolio in credit and equity investments worth more than 50 million Euros (215 billion Shillings).

The board also appointed Andrew James Nyakoojo as the Director of Supervision and Peter Emong Ojulang, as the Director of Finance and Administration. The recruitment of the Executive Director and the two directors means the top management of the Authority is now fully constituted.

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