The University of Pretoria graduate has been recognised for his sterling work at the municipality
City of Tshwane CFO Umar Banda has been nominated for the CFO Awards in 2018. The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held in May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.
The affable executive was appointed to the role on a permanent basis after serving in acting capacity since July 2014. He has navigated the change in political administration with aplomb, reining in overspend and sticking to solid financial principles. Umar first joined the municipality as an executive director in 2013 and previously filled the posts of audit manager at the Auditor General of SA and a manager at KPMG. He holds a BCom degree from the University of Pretoria and has completed an executive leadership programme at the Gordon Institute of Business Science.
In an interview with CFO South Africa, he had some advice for financial executives in terms of holding fast to their values:
"As a CFO you need to ensure you maintain your integrity and professionalism. It does get a little tricky at times but if you stick to your values it makes life a lot easier. You also need to be steadfast and stick to your decisions – it's the only way to survive in this environment."
