Kenya's Most Successful Village That Controls half of the Country's economy

KENYA: This Village in Kenya boasts of producing the most successful business people in Kenya or East Africa. The Rwathia village "boys" include Equity Bank Chairman Peter Munga, Equity Bank CEO James Mwangi, billionaire investment banker Jimnah Mbaru and insurance magnate Benson Wairegi.

Britam Board of Director Jimnah Mburu (left) Britam Group Managing Director Benson Wairegi (center) and Equity bank, Chief Executive officer James Mwangi who is also Britam Board of Director. || Image: SDE

“This village arguably controls almost 20 per cent of Kenya’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and almost 40 per cent of the stock market in Kenya,” explains Dr Ndemo in a 2014 article title The Mystery of Success.

“Their forebearers like Gerishon Kirima and Gerald Gikonyo, one of the co-founders of Rwathia Distributors, were successful in spite of the fact that they had limited education. Rwathia’s third generation is succeeding, not just here in Kenya, but in far-flung areas like the United States.” - Dr Bitange Ndemo, a senior lecturer at the University of Nairobi’s Business School,

“Equity’s Corporate Social Responsibility in Wings to Fly, which is sponsoring students to attend some of the best universities in the world, is enough to shower blessings on its founders. So whichever way you look at this, Dr Mwangi and his teams have left an indelible mark that will never be matched by any organisation in the foreseeable future.” added Dr Ndemo