Beatrice Memo, Commissioner of Customs Services, Kenya Revenue Authority

Joined the former Customs and Excise Department in January 1987 after having successfully completed the mandatory two (2) year training at the Customs Training Centre.

She was later absorbed in the Kenya Revenue Authority in July 1995 when the Income Tax, VAT and Customs Services departments were merged by an ACT of Parliament to form the Kenya Revenue Authority.

Ms. Memo rose through the ranks within the Authority, heading departmental Customs Stations across the country and later two major Kenya Revenue Authority Regions.

Prior to her appointment as the Commissioner of Kenya Customs, Ms Memo deputized her predecessor for two years from June 2009 to February 2012.

She was appointed Commissioner of Customs through a competitive interview conducted to fill the position after the expiry of the former Commissioner of Customs Services term contract.

Ms. Memo is a career Customs Officer and has twice been the chairperson of the East African Authority Technical Committee.  She headed the Customs Reform and Modernization Programme from 2003 to 2005 that saw the Kenya Customs move from manual processing of customs declarations and clearance to a paperless environment. On the international scene, Ms Memo was elected the Vice Chairperson of the Capacity Building Committee in February 2013 during the CB4 meeting held in Brussels, Belgium.

She holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree (2^nd Upper Class, Hons) from the University of Nairobi and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) in Strategic Management from Moi University Kenya. She was recently awarded a “Head of State Commendation” by HE the President for her achievement in the Public Sector.