Monetary Policy Committee

Dr Maluke Letete

Qualifications: Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D)- Economic, Master of Arts (MA)- Economics, Bachelor of Arts (BA)- Economics and Statistic

Professional Roles: Governor, Dr. Letete served as the Chief Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister of Lesotho. His vast professional roles include: NSDP II Project Manager/Coordinator and Lead Consultant under the Ministry of Finance, Lesotho, Non-Executive Director at the Central Bank of Lesotho (over five years), full-time member of the Risk and IT Governance Committee (RITGC) and Monetary Policy Committee at the CBL. He is also the lead author of the second National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP II). He was a Senior Lecturer and Head of Department of Economics at the National University of Lesotho and a Lecturer in Economics at the University of Cape Town, School of Economics.

Awards and Recognition:

• Recipient of the Carnegie Award and
• the Next Generation for Social Sciences in Africa Award

Mr. P.L. Mohapi

Qualifications: Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Economics, National University of Lesotho, Master of Science (MSc) in Economics & Econometrics, University of Manchester,UK, Master of Business Administration (MBA),Heriot-Watt University,UK.

Professional Roles: Mr Mohapi is the current First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Lesotho. His previous professional roles include; Acting Governor, Central Bank of Lesotho (Jan 01 – May 31, 2022). He was also the Chief Economist & Head of Research, Central Bank of Lesotho for over 9 years. Other roles include serving as Executive Secretary, Universal Service Fund, Lesotho Communications Authority, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Revenue Services Lesotho from June 2014 – July 2017 and Senior Lecturer and Head of Economics Department at the National University of Lesotho.

Dr. R. Thamae

Qualifications: PhD. Economics, University of South Africa, M.A. Economics, University of Mauritius. B.A. Economics, National University of Lesotho.

Professional Roles: Dr Thamae is a Senior Lecturer of Economics, National University of Lesotho. He is also a Part-time Lecturer at the Energy Research Centre, National University of Lesotho. He is the Risk and Information Technology Governance Committee Member for the Central Bank of Lesotho where he oversees risk and IT governance and a Monetary Policy Committee Member in the Bank. His previous roles include; Part-time Lecturer, Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension, and Lecturer, Department of Economics at National University of Lesotho having been a Teaching Assistant, Department of Economics and Faculty Tutor, Faculty of Social Sciences in the same university. He is a member of various professional institutions, namely; Institute of Directors South Africa (IoDSA), Economic Society of South Africa (ESSA), Econometric Society (ES) in Africa, National University of Lesotho Energy Research Centre (ERC), National University of Lesotho Innovations Committee (NULIC) and Faculty of Social Sciences Research and Conference Sub-Committee at the National University of Lesotho.

Dr. Ratjomose Machema

Qualifications: PhD. Economics, University of Cape Town; M.Phil. Economics, University of Ghana; B.A. Economics with Minor Statistics, National University of Lesotho.

Professional Roles: Mr. Machema currently serves as a Lecturer of Economics at the National University of Lesotho (NUL) and is a member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) at the Central Bank of Lesotho. His diverse professional experience includes roles such as Postgraduate and Research Coordinator in the Faculty of Social Sciences at NUL,
Technical Advisor for Light Industry at the German Development Corporation (GIZ), and part-time lecturer for various courses and departments at NUL. Mr. Machema has also held positions as a Teaching Assistant and Contract Lecturer at the University of Cape Town (UCT) and Senior Consultant/Academic Planner at the Lesotho Institute and Public
Administration and Management (LIPAM).

.

Dr. Tanka Tlelima

Qualifications: Ph.D. Economics, University of Cape Town; Master’s Degree Economics, University of Sheffield, UK.

Professional Roles: Dr. Tanka L. Tlelima serves as a member of the Monetary Policy Committee and the Director of the Research Department at the Central Bank of Lesotho. In this capacity, he oversees macroeconomic analysis, policy research, and economic reporting, while spearheading strategic initiatives to support monetary policy formulation.
With over 20 years of experience in macroeconomic policy analysis, Dr. Tlelima brings exceptional expertise to the committee.

Previously, Dr. Tlelima served for six years as a Senior Advisor to the Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), representing 23 sub-Saharan African countries at the IMF Board.

Mr Matsabisa Thamae

Qualifications: Bachelor of Arts in Economics, National University of Lesotho, Master of Finance and Investment (MFI), University of the Witwatersrand.

Professional Roles: Mr. Thamae is currently the Director of Financial Markets at the Central Bank. With a distinguished career spanning 17 years in finance and investment, he commenced as an analyst in portfolio (asset) management. As his career progressed, he expanded his expertise to market development, leading the establishment of the Maseru Securities Markets and developing the infrastructure and regulatory framework for a well- functioning Treasury securities market.

Mr. Thamae’s proficiency further extends to the insurance sector, where he oversaw the industry for six years. He later returned to the Central Bank of Lesotho, serving as the Director of Financial Markets and a Member of the Monetary Policy Committee. In his current role, he chairs and participates in multiple committees to support the Bank’s core mandate and activities.