CS Eliud Owalo net worth is Ksh.645 Million, half from tree planting

A candidate for the position of Cabinet Secretary (CS) for information, communication, and the digital economy, claims to have a net worth of Ksh. 645 million.

When he testified before the National Assembly's Committee on Appointments on Friday, Eliud Owalo said he got his money from land investments, forays into the hotel business, and planting trees for money.

My personal home in the countryside is valued at Ksh. 70 million, while my Nairobi home is worth Ksh. 120 million. "I have four automobiles valued at around Ksh.15 million, 200 million Ksh. worth of upcountry property, and an unfinished hotel complex," Owalo claimed.

"The hotel is now valued at Ksh. 80 million, but according to the bill of quantities, when it is finished, it will be worth Ksh. 293 million. At the right time, I think that all the trees I've planted for business have a value of Ksh. 160 million.

Owalo gave the committee a detailed account of his life to show how he got to be a candidate for CS.

Owalo was born in Asembo, which is in the Rarieda region of Siaya County, in 1967. He went to a local school before he started his O-levels at Maseno National School.

After finishing his A-levels at St. Mary's Yala, he went to Kenyatta University to get a B.A. in Economics and Business Studies.

" I also have an MBA from the University of Nebraska with a concentration in human resource management. I'm finishing up my PhD in strategic management at the University of Nebraska as we speak. I have completed my coursework and am now working on my thesis, "said Owalo.

Owalo has experience working in the public sector as a strategy expert and HR management consultant. He is a professional economist.

He said that over the course of his career, he had made at least 50 strategic plans for different local, regional, and international organizations.

His specialties include organizational reorganization, strategic planning, micro-and macroeconomic analysis, and job assessment.

Owalo was able to help the Ministries of Lands, Environment, Labour (twice), Heritage, Cooperative Development, Provincial Administration, and the Ministry of the Interior with their strategy plans.

"Within parastatals, I have consulted on the creation of strategic plans for Kenya Ports Authority, Kenya Airports Authority, Kenya National Highway Authority (twice; in 2013 and 2017), current strategic plan for Kenya School of Government, strategic plan for KETRACO, first strategic plan for Competition Authority, and first strategic plan for Kenya Trade Network Agency."