Medical, academic career
Before being appointed to cabinet five years ago, Prof Magoha served as Vice-Chancellor at the University of Nairobi (UoN) for ten years (2005 to 2015). He also served as a Professor of Urological and Transplant Surgery at UoN’s College of Health Sciences. His medical career includes work and training in Nigeria, Ghana, Ireland and the United Kingdom. He also trained in Executive Management at Stanford University.In Nigeria, he began his career as an intern in Surgery at Lagos University Teaching Hospital and rose to become Senior Resident and Clinical Lecturer in Surgery. He later joined UoN as a Lecturer in Urological Surgery in 1988 and rose through the ranks to become a full Professor of Surgery in 2000.
George Albert Omore Magoha (2 July 1952 – 24 January 2023) was a Kenyan consultant surgeon, academic administrator and technocrat, who served as a professor of surgery at Maseno University School of Medicine, in Kisumu County, Nyanza, Kenya, since January 2023.[1]
| George Magoha MBS, EBS, CBS | |
|---|---|
| Born | George Albert Omore Magoha 2 July 1952 Kisumu, Kenya Colony |
| Died | 24 January 2023 (aged 70) Nairobi, Kenya |
| Cause of death | Cardiac arrest |
| Alma mater | University of Lagos Lagos University Teaching Hospital University College Hospital, Ibadan Royal College of Surgeons Royal Postgraduate Medical School |
| Occupation(s) | Surgeon; professor; academic; administrator. |
| Years active | 1990 – 2022 |
| Title | Cabinet Secretary of Education in the Cabinet of Kenya |
Immediately before his current assignment, he was the Cabinet Secretary of Education in the Cabinet of Kenya, under president Uhuru Kenyatta’s second term effective 26 March 2019.[2][3]
Magoha was the chairman of the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC), from 2016 until 2019.[4]
Magoha previously served as the Vice Chancellor of the University of Nairobi from 2005 until 2015. He was a Professor of Surgery at the University of Nairobi’s College of Health Sciences. He concurrently served as a Consultant Urologist at Kenyatta National Hospital, the teaching hospital of the university.[5]
Contents
Early life and educationEdit
Magoha was born in Kisumu on 2 July 1952.[6][7][8] He moved in with his older brother, John Obare and his wife Agatha Christine Obare,[9] in Nairobi, on account of his [Magoha] asthma, at a young age.[5]
Magoha attended Dr David Livingstone Primary School, in Nairobi, the capital and largest city in Kenya. He then attended Starehe Boys’ Centre and School, where he completed his O-Level studies. He then studied at Strathmore School, for his A-Level education, graduating with a High School Diploma.[5]
Magoha was awarded a scholarship to study human medicine at the University of Lagos, in Nigeria. His studies took him through the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, the University College Hospital, Ibadan, both in Nigeria and the Royal Postgraduate Medical School, in United Kingdom. He was trained as a specialized urologist and was a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.[5]
CareerEdit
At the turn of the century (late 1990s to early 2000s), Magoha was appointed chairman, dean and principal in the College of Health of Sciences and later deputy vice-chancellor at the University of Nairobi, in quick succession. In 2005 was appointed the vice-chancellor of the UoN, having scored the highest among the applicants.[5]
His most remarkable achievement at the UoN was instituting discipline among the academic staff, non-teaching staff and the students. A the time he assumed office, apparently staff members never worked, lecturers missed classes and some even lost student examination marks. Student strikes were notoriously common and had damaged the institution’s reputation.[5]
By meeting openly with students to discuss their issues, he created a safety valve for ventilation and preventing them from rioting. For the 10 years he served as the vice chancellor, the students went on strike fewer times than before his time in office.[5]
In 2016, with his record as a no-nonsense education administrator, he was appointed the Chairman of the Kenya National Examination Council, by President Uhuru Kenyatta. His immediate task as the Chairman of KNEC was to reform the council to arrest the widespread academic dishonesty and corruption in the administration of national examinations. He is credited to have dismantled cartels that had propagated exam cheating for years and restored credibility of exams in Kenya.[10][11][12]
On 1 March 2019, he was nominated as the Cabinet Secretary for Education in the Kenyan Cabinet,[13] and was sworn in on 26 March 2019, replacing Amina Mohamed, who was transferred to the Sports docket.[3]
DeathEdit
Magoha died following a suspected cardiac arrest at the Nairobi Hospital, on 24 January 2023, at the age of 71.[14] He had collapsed at home before being rushed to the hospital where he later succumbed after efforts to resuscitate him were futile.[15][16]
Magoha was known as a tough-talking and no-nonsense during his tenure at the Ministry of Education, where he served at the helm as a Cabinet Secretary.[17][18]
