Moses Kelvin Banturaki was born in Uganda. He holds a Bachelors Degree in Public Administration from Makerere University and postgraduate business certificates from the Rotterdam School of Management (ERASMUS) Netherlands, and Stellenbosch University, in Cape Town.

The owner and managing director of Danish Cleantech Group, Banturaki currently lives in Nairobi with his wife and two children and is a representative of the Danish Business Network of Kenya to the European Business Council in Kenya.

He is also an avid reader and writer and has been writing a weekly column for Uganda’s Daily Monitor for almost 10 years. In his spare time he enjoys watching football.

Banturaki grew up in Entebbe and later Kampala, Uganda in the 1980s, the lastborn of three brothers and two sisters. They were raised by their mother following their father’s death.

He went into sales immediately after graduating from university and has over 24 years experience in selling computers, cars and now renewable energy technology.

He worked in Uganda and Mozambique for almost two decades for Danish firms which he describes as having a people-centred culture and strong on ethics.

About five years ago, three Danish energy firms that wanted to set up shop in Uganda were looking for someone with both local knowledge and an appreciation of Danish Business culture to partner with.

They approached him and set up Danish Cleantech Group in 2013, a renewable energy technology company to provide local support for Danish green tech industries in East and Central Africa.

In 2015, the firm moved its regional office to Nairobi to grow its market share and became a member of the Danish Business Network in Kenya.

In 2017, Banturaki was appointed the Network’s representative to the European Business Council in Kenya and he later in the same year bought out his Danish partners to be sole owner and managing director.

Banturaki believes the time is ripe for renewable energy in East Africa to take root and end the unsustainable reliance on fossil fuels and biomass.

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What is your off-duty passion?

I read quite a lot because I buy about four books a month, covering anything on religion, business, politics to astrophysics.

However, I am particularly fascinated by the field of cosmology because for all our “specialness” as a species, we are rather an insignificant part of a bigger picture. Science may have enabled us to grow organs in laboratories but still can’t explain the origin or fate of nature. And just what does that do to our spiritual instincts? Sharpen or dampen them?

If you weren’t the managing director of Danish Cleantech Group today, what else would you be doing?

I would love to travel the world but not just hopping on a plane, touring and flying out to the next destination. I want to immerse myself in each new country by staying and getting to know the people and their culture. But, this would require me to win the lottery.

How do you manage your wardrobe?

By not trying to keep up with trends in the fashion world. I wear functional longlasting clothes like jeans and tees if I want to be casual and suits if I have to be formal. I think it is criminal negligence to wear skin tight suits or pants.

Where in East Africa are you most likely to be found on your day off?

That would be in Nairobi, but the proximity to Uganda means I visit Kampala quite often.

What is your best travel destination in East Africa?

Chobe Lodge in Northern Uganda. It’s so serene that you get the feeling that nothing has changed since the dawn of creation. The sad fact is that it won’t stay like this for much longer, because of the recent oil discovery. I am afraid it’s only a matter of time before the drilling starts and the land will be laid to waste.

Do you have a must-visit list?

Yes, Alaska in the summer where the sun just hangs on the horizon and never really rises or sets, for like 60 days. I would love to travel to the Far East Asia, South America and Russia.

What is East Africa’s strength?

A communal understanding that we are destined to become one nation of tremendous potential.

What is your best collection?

I used to collect music CDs until digital technology disrupted that. Downloads have rendered music collection irrelevant.

The other thing I treasure is a pebble that I picked from the stone quarry on Robben Island in South Africa despite being warned by the guide not to. It is a reminder of the island’s history and may be one day I shall return it.

How do you unwind from a busy week?

There was a time I used to play football, but my knees don’t co-operate anymore, so I just go for a run, especially in Nairobi where most of the terrain is flat unlike in Kampala. I find running liberating as long as I can find a long road with little traffic. I find that it helps clear my mind and recharges the batteries.

What do you consider your biggest achievement so far?

There is nothing I have done so far that I would consider my biggest achievement because then what would be the point of living! I will forever be a work in progress and because I get bored easily and move on quickly there seems to be something new I need to achieve.

What was your last great read?

When to Rob a Bank by Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner. It is a collection of warped suggestions and well-intended rants that challenge our conventional thinking.

What movie has had the most impact on you?

There are two. Heat starring Al Pacino and Robert De’Niro and Shawshank Redemption which made Morgan Freeman one of the best narrators today.

What is your favourite music?

Since I bloomed in the 1990s so I am an Alanis Morissette, Oasis, U2, The Fugees kind of guy. I also think Phil Collins is the most gifted musician ever. I am also a fan of Pink even though I don’t know how to classify her music.

What is your favourite food?
Anything but sea food or matooke. I prefer my food and fruits organic. I also like smoked beef made in the old technique of preserving meat over a smoky fire. The best kind can only be found outside Kampala.