Deputy Governor Dr. Michael Atingi-Ego, who has served as Acting Governor of the Bank of Uganda (BoU) since the death of long-serving Governor Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile in February 2022, has been appointed Governor of the BoU.
Atingi-Ego’s appointment officially ends the dual leadership role he has been fulfilling.
Tumusiime-Mutebile served as Governor for over two decades, from 2001 until his passing in February 2022.
Atingi-Ego will be deputized by economist Prof. Augustus Nuwagaba, according to local media reports.
Atingi-Ego, 60, joined the BoU in 2020 as Deputy Governor, having previously served as Executive Director at the Macroeconomic and Financial Management Institute of Eastern and Southern Africa (MEFMI).
Before joining MEFMI, he held the position of Executive Director of Research at the BoU.
Prof. Nuwagaba, 61, is a distinguished academic from Makerere University and heads an international consultancy firm. He possesses extensive expertise in economic transformation, financial management, and fiscal policy.
These appointments come at a critical juncture as investigations into the September 2024 theft of US$16 million from the central bank intensify.
Last week, authorities arrested the Accountant General and eight senior BoU officials in connection with the heist.
The BoU has previously stated that US$8.2 million of the stolen funds were recovered from a London-based entity that received US$8.596 million intended for repaying the African Development Bank (AfDB).
