Dr Ben Kajwang, Director and Chief Executive Officer of the College of Insurance, has won the seventh Global Change Makers Award. Pulse Live Kenya, citing the award announcement, reports that he is the first Kenyan chief executive to receive the honour. Mpasho also reported the win and called it a historic first.
The award is organised by Project 100. It recognises leadership in corporate governance, education and social impact. The sources do not say when or where it was presented.
The award caps a busy year of honours for Kajwang. On October 20, during the 63rd Mashujaa Day celebrations, President William Ruto named him a National Hero at Uasin Gishu State Lodge. According to Pulse Live Kenya, he was listed as Hero No. 186 of 264 honourees in the Scholarship, Professionalism and Research category. The citation recognised his work developing the insurance sector in Kenya and across Africa. In July, he also received the Bobea Leadership Award for his work in governance and leadership.
Kajwang has held several top roles in the insurance industry. He served as president of the African Insurance Organisation (AIO) in 2022-2023. From 2014 to 2022, he chaired the Association of Insurance Trainers and Educators in Africa. He also sits on the Africa Re Foundation Council and the AIO Foundation board. At the Organisation of Eastern and Southern African Insurers, he is an executive board member and chairs the Human Resource Committee. He has also chaired the Technical Committee at Kenya's Policyholders Compensation Fund.
At the College of Insurance, Kajwang has led efforts to strengthen professional training and insurance education. He spearheaded the Edge Hotel and Convention Centre, a five-star facility that hosted the 48th African Insurance Organisation Conference.
He holds a PhD in Strategic Management and the Associate of the Chartered Insurance Institute (ACII) qualification from the United Kingdom. He also holds membership and fellowship qualifications from insurance and risk management bodies in the UK, Uganda and Kenya. Kajwang has written nine books and more than 70 academic papers.
His training work reaches beyond Kenya to Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Malawi and other COMESA countries. According to Pulse Live Kenya, he has helped train more than 8,500 pension trustees and 5,500 insurance professionals.