Parliament clears Dr. Michael Atingi-Ego for BoU Deputy Governor job

Rt. Hon Rebecca Kadaga the Speaker of Parliament and Chairperson of the Appointments Committee of Parliament has written to President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, clearing seasoned economist and Bank of Uganda veteran, Dr. Micheal Atingi-Ego for the Deputy Governor job.

Mr. Museveni on March 29^th, 2020 appointed Dr. Atingi-Ego to the No.2 job at the central bank, subject to parliamentary approval as provided for in Article Article 161(3) of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda.

The article says that the Governor, the Deputy Governor and all other members of the board shall be appointed by the President with the approval of Parliament and shall hold office for a term of five years but shall be eligible for reappointment.

In her 7^th April 2020 letter, Kadaga wrote: “Reference is made to your letter addressed to me, Ref: P0/19 dated 28th March, 2020, in which you forwarded the name of Dr. Michael Atingi-Ego for Parliamentary approval as Deputy Governor, Bank of Uganda. Pursuant to Article 161 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, and the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament of Uganda, the Appointments Committee of Parliament has interacted with the above-named person and found him suitable and therefore approved his appointment as Deputy Governor, Bank of Uganda.”

It is not yet clear when Dr. Atingi-Ego reports to office as he was reportedly holed in the US due to Covid-19 related travel restrictions. The Deputy Governor’s office is currently occupied by the Dr. Adam Mugume who was appointed by the board on March 27^th 2020.

Who is Dr. Michael Atingi-Ego?

Prior to his appointment, Dr. Atingi-Ego has been the Executive Director of the Macroeconomic and Financial Management Institute of Eastern and Southern Africa (MEFMI)- a regionally owned institute currently with 14 member countries. The countries are Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

He has occupied the office since 2018.

He is a seasoned economic policy analyst who started his career at the Bank of Uganda rising through the ranks to become the Executive Director, Research. In 2008 he took up an assignment with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as Deputy Director of the African Department (AFR) from whence he joined MEFMI.

He obtained his first degree from Makerere University and later proceeded for postgraduate studies in the United Kingdom where he got a master’s degree from the Cardiff Business School, University of Wales and a Ph.D. from Liverpool University.