AMREF Flying Doctors announces New CEO

The AMREF Flying Doctors (AFD) Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of Stephen Gitau as  the new Chief Executive Officer Designate for AMREF Flying Doctors. Steve will replace Dr. Bettina Vadera, who is retiring from AMREF Flying Doctors at the end of this year. Steve will start transitioning into his new role from 1st of October 2019 and fully assume office on 1st January 2020, with the two of them working closely hand in hand during the transition.

Outgoing CEO, Dr. Bettina Vadera

Amref Health Africa is immensely grateful to Bettina for the energy, vision, and compassion that she dedicated to AMREF as a whole and AMREF Flying Doctors in particular, during her 21 years of exemplary service as an emergency flight physician, Medical Director and for the last 8 years as the CEO. During her time with the organization, Bettina was instrumental in achieving great changes. Under her leadership, AMREF Flying Doctors developed from an aero-medical Outreach Programme of Amref Health Africa into a successful, internationally accredited Air Ambulance company that owns and operates a fleet of dedicated air ambulance aircraft including two jets and has become an important pillar and vital source of funding for Amref Health Africa. Bettina has resigned from her position for personal, family related reasons but will remain fully committed to support AMREF Flying Doctors during the transition and beyond.

Incoming CEO, Stephen Gitau

Steve has been the Chief Finance & Administration Officer (CFAO) of AMREF Flying Doctors for the last eight years. He holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Strathmore Business School, a BA in Economics from University of Nairobi and is a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) and Certified Public Accountant (CPA-K). Steve joined AMREF Flying Doctors when it was transitioning from a department of Amref Health Africa the NGO, to a commercial entity in 2011. During this time, Steve was providing vital support in strategic leadership, while managing the Finance, Human Resources, ICT and Administration units. He has been part of the Executive Team all along and is determined to take AMREF Flying Doctors to the next level. Under his visionary leadership and with the support of the Board of Directors and the staff of AMREF Flying Doctors, the company is looking at prosperity and growth.