University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Prof Florens Luoga
Dar es Salaam. President John Magufuli yesterday appointed the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Prof Florens Luoga, as the new governor of the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) – thus unravelling the mystery over who would replace Prof Benno Ndulu as the central bank’s seventh chief executive in the series.
Taking into account the President’s noble desire to ensure that Tanzanians get their fair share of returns from their country’s God-given natural resources as potential wealth, the appointment of Prof Luoga – who is a lawyer by profession – did not come as much of a surprise.
Speaking at a special event to award certificates of appreciation to members of two presidential committees which probed some highly-controversial issues regarding public revenues within the precious minerals industry at State House yesterday, Dr Magufuli could hardly hide his frustration at how some investors are still able to so easily send their income and profits out of the country.
“Prof Ndulu has done a wonderful job at the Bank of Tanzania and, as his tenure expires early next year, I have decided to appoint a new governor from members of the negotiating team [the Tanzanian team that negotiated the deal between the government and Barrick Gold Corporation, the majority shareholder in Acacia Mining PLC]. His name is Prof Florens Luoga,” Dr Magufuli dramatically announced.
One school of thought was of the view that Prof Luoga’s appointment may have been a result of the significant role he may have played in the negotiations between the government and Barrick Gold, whereby the two sides amicably resolved a number of issues that may see Tanzania benefiting more from its natural resources, particularly the extractive industries.
The Head of State could also have been looking for a person with sound legal standing – and one who would be in a position to come up with sound reforms sooner than later that’d see to the central bank playing an increasingly important role in protecting Tanzania’s relatively phenomenal potential wealth in natural resources and other ‘assets.’ In any case, President Magufuli expressed optimism that Prof Luoga would deliver as the new governor – including especially in implementing the country’s Foreign Exchange Act of 1992, which prohibits investors from opening bank accounts outside the country. After all, Dr Luoga is an acknowledged expert on Taxation Law.
An advocate of the High Court of Tanzania, Prof Luoga holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the UDSM. He also holds a Master’s degree in law from Queen’s University in Canada, and a Master’s in International Law (MIL) from Lund University in Sweden. In 2003, he successfully completed a PhD in Law programme at Warwick University in the United Kingdom.
In due course of time and events, Prof Luoga has researched and published widely in areas of Taxation, Human Rights, Law – and Procurement!
The tenure of Prof Ndulu as the sixth Governor of the central bank expires on January 8, 2018. This is in line with the requirements of the Bank of Tanzania Act 2006, whose Section 8 (1) provides that ‘There shall be appointed by the President a Governor who shall – unless he dies or resigns or vacates or is removed from the office for good cause or is disqualified – hold office for a period of five years, and shall be eligible for a re-appointment”.
Section 8 (a) and (b) state that, to qualify for the appointment of BoT Governor, one shall be required to hold a University Degree – and must have not less than fifteen years’ experience in the fields of economics, banking, accountancy or finance or Law.
The appointment of Prof Luoga as the central bank’s governor comes five months after the President appointed Dr Bernard Kibesse and Dr Yamungu Kayandabila as BoT deputy governors. The former is responsible for Financial Stability and (Financial) Deepening, while the latter looks after Economic and Financial Policies.
Prof Ndulu will be remembered for rebuilding the BoT’s image as a transparent institution. He came to the helm of the BoT after President Jakaya Kikwete fired Prof Ndulu’s predecessor, Dr Daudi Balali, after an audit investigation uncovered fraudulent transactions in what came to be known as the External Payment Arrears (Epa) scandal. (Additional Reporting by Deogratius Kamagi).
