Gerald Mariemuthoo
Nominee's Province:
Gauteng
Age:
34
Project Name/Description:
Follow the money; that is exactly what forensic investigator Gerald Mariemuthoo has done for his entire career. For 12 years he worked in SAPS looking into the murky world of terror financing under the national security umbrella, and for the past three years he has been silently sleuthing at the South African Reserve Bank as a currency integrity investigator, where he combats financial crimes such as money laundering and counterfeiting. “I feel like the growth I had in my three years at the Reserve Bank has been so career-defining. It was a bold step to leave the SAPS, but I always say growth only happens in uncomfortable places. You need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable,” he says. Gerald estimates that he has saved the South African taxpayer roughly R50-million but says the figure increases if you look at the collective work of the teams he has been part of. He is a regular speaker within his own workplace, as he inspires his own colleagues to continue investing in their own professional development. He is currently completing an MBA at the Wits Business School.
