Dar es Salaam. In Tanzania today, only two women stand tall in the male-dominated banking industry.
Until last year, four commercial banks were under women chief executive officers (CEO) but the number has since gone down to only two.
NMB Bank Plc’s Ruth Zaipuna and NCBA Bank’s Margaret Karume are the only women who have been trusted by their banks’ shareholders and the industry’s regulator to steer the lenders to vibrancy.
Ms Mwanahiba Mohammed’s tenure as managing director for Ecobank Tanzania expired last year when the bank’s board appointed Mr Charles Asiedu, to succeed her, while Ms Angela Moshi, who was Uchumi Commercial Bank (UCB) chief executive, retired in June, last year.
Bank of Tanzania (BoT) figures show that as of December 2015, the country was home to a total of 56 banking institutions. The number comprised 39 commercial banks, two development banks, 12 community banks and three microfinance banking institutions.
As of 2019, however, the number dropped to 51, whereby 38 were commercial banks, two development banks, six community banks and five microfinance banking institutions.
This number has since gone down further, courtesy of several mergers and acquisitions during the past one year.
The Citizen caught up with Ms Moshi, Ms Zaipuna and Ms Karume who share their experiences as women leaders in the banking sub-sector and what it takes to succeed.
Ms Moshi, who worked in the industry for 42 years believes the success of a CEO is an outcome of their management team .
“I am glad to have retired after working in the industry for 42 years. Bank work is highly demanding especially when you are a family person. You need to have a partner who is highly understanding so that sometimes, he closes the gaps when you are stuck,” she told The Citizen.
After retiring, all she has to tell women is that there is no shortcut to women’s self advancement than upping themselves academically. “They should also work hard so they can be seen,” Ms Moshi said.
According to NMB Banks’ Ms Zaipuna, there are a number of challenges that hold women back from rising to the level that she (Ms Zaipuna) achieved, noting that one must always visualise the direction that they want to take to rise to top management levels.
In Tanzania, available data shows that women CEOs account for only nine percent of the country’s top 140 companies, primarily due to barriers such as male dominated culture, women being responsible for child-care and some unconscious biases.
“So for me, I would say, I really started when I rejoined PwC, immediately after my Master’s degree in 2002. By then I had developed some sense of direction in terms of what I wanted to achieve - and that is to become a corporate leader in Tanzania,” she told The Citizen.
Women in top management levels in the banking industry are hopeful that the number of female CEOs will increase steadily since women have what it takes to hold leadership positions in the sub-sector and other key areas. PHOTOS | FILE
With that determination and the tremendous support she received from her employers and career mentors, she was able to climb the ladder to director levels at PwC and Standard Chartered Bank.
As determined as she was, Ms Zaipuna never stopped at where she was and that was why when NMB Bank Plc came knocking with a vacant position of chief finance officer, she was aware that that was the beginning of greater things to come.
It was basing on such a background that when Ms Ineke Bussemaker’s CEO tenure at NMB Bank Plc ended, it took the bank’s board just months to settle on her as interim CEO.
With close cooperation from the management team, Ms Zaipuna has proved to the world that the lender’s board made the right decision.
“During this time, we worked so hard towards a collective dream of ensuring that NMB remained the number one Bank in Tanzania. We performed very well in the period,” she said.
Some of the notable achievements include a 52 percent year-on-year growth in profit after tax in 2019/20 before achieving a record Sh205 billion profit after tax in 2020.
“This is the highest ever in the banking industry in Tanzania. Our cost to income ratio reduced from levels of 60 percent to now 51 percent,” she explained.
Putting work first
For NCBA Bank’s Ms Karume, it is all about putting work first and gender aside.
“So in my case, this hasn’t been a challenge as I do not put my gender first when it comes to work. What I have learnt throughout my 28 years of experience is to regard myself as being equal to my colleagues.”
She said during her 28 years of working in the sub-sector, she realised that as long as one is good at the job, is approachable and a team player, one can work well with both men and women.
“I will also say that having the right drive, determination to succeed and the confidence to put yourself forward is what matters more…Women should feel qualified enough to do something. They should not hesitate to go for it as greatness awaits,” she said.
She remains confident that very soon, the number of women CEOs in the banking industry will rise. This will however, require women to build confidence in themselves.
“They must continue pushing for greatness wherever they are and in whatever they do, because the potential for greatness lies within each one of us…Women must believe that they have what it takes to go for it,” she said.
She exudes confidence that during the next five years, NCBA’s focus will be on digital business and digital channels.
The bank, she said, is consistently working hard to make digital a key part of all its product offerings instead of being regarded as simply an add on.
“In the course of the next five years, we will leverage on our NCBA regional strength and rollout products and services already available within our NCBA group. We aim to be the financial services partner that inspires our customers’ growth,” said Ms Karume.
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