Joseph Kinyua has retired.
He handed over the mantle of Head of Public Service to Felix Kosgei who was appointed by President William Ruto.
This puts an end to one of the most illustrious careers in public service that has seen him serve in four administrations. A man who started of as a high school principal
In his short speech, after he ushered in his predecessor, Kinyua termed his 44 years of service as profound.
“I thank you and your predecessors for according me the privilege to serve in four successive administrations and in yours as well. It has been a profound honor and a humbling journey. I’m immensely grateful to be accorded the rare opportunity to serve Kenyan and the great men chosen to be President.”
Kinyua ascended to power in 2013 after being appointed by President Uhuru Kenyatta becoming one of the oldest public servants.
The 70-year-old was a trusted ally of retired President Kenyatta who took him from a Principle Secretary at the National Treasury to the State House.
Kinyua rose to the position of the most powerful public servant in the State House, gaining the President’s full confidence to the point where even Cabinet Secretaries had to go via him before making any presentations to the President.
Kinyua has been described by peers as a workaholic who is incorruptible and economical, not wasting State resources. While at Treasury, he was alleged to have arrived at 4am, while others, including his boss Uhuru, arrived at 8am.
Kinyua’s career began in 1978 as an assistant lecturer at the University of Nairobi. He began working at the Central Bank of Kenya as an economist in 1980 and eventually attained the position of director of research.
Before returning to the Central Bank of Kenya, he served as an economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from 1985 to 1990.
From January 2003 until his appointment as Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Planning and National Development in January 2003, Kinyua was the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance.
He has held positions on a number of state corporation boards. He serves as an Alternate Governor on the Board of Governors of the World Bank and on the Programme Committee of the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC).
He forbade all state employees from serving as independent directors on the boards of parastatals in 2020 as part of austerity measures to stop additional income loss in a sinking economy plagued by widespread corruption, extravagant spending, soaring public debt, and dwindling tax collections.
After violence broke out in Kenol, Murang’a county, Kinyua barred all political gatherings through the National Security Advisory Council (NSAC) in an effort to stop the spread of Covid-19.
In 2020, Kinyua was tasked with Chairing the Inter-ministerial Committee making arrangements for the State Funeral of the late former President Daniel Toroitich arap Moi.
Joseph Kinyua is the Head of Public Service. He is one of Kenya’s oldest civil servants having been appointed by President Uhuru Kenyatta when he ascended to power in 2013.
He also chaired the transition committee that oversaw the exit of Kenyatta’s administration and the induction of President William Ruto’s government.
During the swearing-in of his cabinet, Ruto thanked Kinyua for facilitating a seamless transition.
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