By Isaac Blessings
Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) has a rather shoddy reputation and this is not helped by the fact that it is a monopoly. Kenyans have complained of rude staff, unnecessary power outages that take forever to restore and corruption at the state corporation. To bring sanity at KPLC, President Uhuru Kenyatta appointed Engineer Rosemary Oduor to become the Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company.
In this article, WoK dives deep to bring you the full story of Engineer Rosemary Oduor.
Educational Background
After completing her secondary education, Rosemary joined Moi University in 1987 where he graduated with a Bachelor Degree in Electrical and Communications Technology, electronics and communications engineering in 1990. She went on to join the University of Nairobi where she acquired a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Operations, Management and Supervision in 2012. She is a registered professional engineer with the Engineers Board of Kenya.
Joining KPLC
Engineer Rosemary Oduor joined the Kenya Power and Lighting Company in 1991. She worked as the regional manager for the Western region and took other managerial position at the parastatal. Prior to her appointment to her current position, she served as the company’s General Manager in charge of Commercial Services and Sales.
Also Read: Dr. Jennifer Riria: From An Early Pregnancy To Becoming KWFT CEO
Reforms at KPLC
Following a series of corruption scandals facing the country’s power company, the then CEO Bernard Ngugi opted to resign after being in charge of the company for 21 years. In a bid to make reforms in the company, President Uhuru Kenyatta formed a task force to review Kenya Power’s purchase agreements. The task force was asked to undertake a comprehensive review of the terms of all Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) entered into by the company. The task force was chaired by John Ngumi while Elsie Mworia, Lilian Abishai and Jasper Mbiuki were joint secretaries.
Gaining Promotion
Following the resignation of Bernard Ngugi and the new reforms at the company, the board of directors led by Chairperson Vivienne Yeda appointed Engineer Rosemary Oduor as the acting Managing Director and CEO of the company.
“We wish to inform our shareholders that the Board of directors, exercising their powers given under article 113 of the Articles of Association of the Kenya Power and Lighting Company Plc., have appointed Engineer Rosemary Oduor as the acting Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the company with effect from 4th August 2021,” the company’s official statement read.
The board further praised Rosemary stating that she has a vast experience in engineering and management having worked for the company for over 30 years. The 55 year old has been firmly steering the company in the right direction with recently announcing that is going to join the internet connection business to increase their sales. She was recently among the six Kenyan women CEOs who made it to the 2022 African Definitive list of 68 best Women CEOs in Africa released by Africa.com.
