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DR HABIL OLAKA
CEO, KENYA BANKERS ASSOCIATION
Dr Habil Olaka is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA). He is a product of the Alliance High School, where he sat for his ‘O’ and ‘A’ Levels. Habil proceeded to the University of Nairobi (UoN) to pursue a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in Electrical Engineering, graduating in 1989 with First Class Honours.
Dr Olaka subsequently joined PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) (it was then Price Waterhouse before the merger with Coopers and Lybrand) in the Audit and Business Advisory Services Division. There, he pursued his professional Certified Public Accountant (CPA) qualification, attaining it in 1992.
Habil transitioned into banking in 1993, starting at Banque Indosuez (currently Bank of Africa) as Internal Auditor. While at Banque Indosuez, he polished his French speaking skills, having studied the language for his ‘A’ Levels. He pursued certification and attained two certificates: a Diploma in Commercial French and a Certificate in Translation (French to English).
Between 1997 and 1998, Dr Olaka was Controller of Finance at the African Housing Fund (AHF), running projects in both Francophone and Anglophone Africa, before moving to the East African Development Bank (EADB) in Kampala, Uganda as Chief Internal Auditor.
He rose through the ranks to head the Risk Management Unit of EADB in 2003, before being appointed Country Manager for the Bank in Kenya in 2005. Habil was promoted to Director of Operations based at the Head Office in Kampala in 2008, a position he held until he took up his current position in 2010.
While at EADB, Dr Olaka pursued a Project Planning and Management course at the University of Bradford in the United Kingdom (UK), and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree awarded with Merit from the prestigious Manchester Business School, also in the UK.
As CEO of KBA, Habil is responsible for the visionary strategies, pivotal initiatives and radical problem solving methodologies that propel the banks in Kenya to scale and gain a competitive advantage. There are a number of transformational initiatives that he has driven in the banking industry besides the focused execution of the industry’s advocacy agenda.
Dr Olaka’s professional strengths are in executive management, strategy formulation and execution, board membership and representation, executive financial leadership and team building.
His tenure at KBA has seen him pursue doctoral studies, attaining a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degree with a concentration in Strategic Management from the United States International University- Africa (USIU-A). Dr Olaka’s research area for the dissertation focused on Strategic Leadership and its influence on strategy implementation in commercial banks in Kenya.
Habil holds positions on various boards, representing both the banking industry and also in his personal capacity. At the regional level, he serves as the Chairman of the East African Bankers Association (in formation) and is a Member of the International Advisory Committee of the Chartered Banker Institute (CBI) in the UK.
On the national front, he is a board member of several organisations, including the Anti-Money Laundering Advisory Board (AMLAB), Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC), and Integrated Payment Services (IPSL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of KBA. He also holds a position on the board of Waica Reinsurance. Furthermore, he chairs the boards of both the Centre for Corporate Governance (CCG) and Gras Savoye Insurance Brokers. Notably, he currently serves as the National President of the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE).
Dr Olaka’s previous roles encompass serving as the Chair of the Public Finance Sector Board of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) and holding positions on the boards of the National Research Fund (NRF), National Housing Corporation (NHC), and the Kenya School of Monetary Studies (KSMS).
He received the prestigious honour of being named the Association Leader of the Year for Africa in 2018 by the Association of Executives in Johannesburg, South Africa. Furthermore, his distinguished service to the nation was acknowledged when he was awarded the National Honours by the President of Kenya as an Elder of the Order of the Burning Spear (EBS).
Habil holds membership in the Institute of the Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK) and is an alumnus of the Strathmore School of Accountancy. Additionally, he is a certified Executive Coach, holding a Practitioner Diploma in Executive Coaching granted by the Academy of Executive Coaching in October 2019.
Further to his professional achievements, he is a member of the College of Canons of the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) Diocese of Butere. During his leisure time, he enjoys playing golf at the Karen Country Club and Muthaiga Golf Club, where he is a member.
Dr Olaka is married to Catherine Abisaki Olaka and they have two children, Stephanie and Matthew who are in their early careers.
