President William Ruto on Tuesday, May 14 made two appointments meant to augment the staff complement supporting the nation’s regional and continental outreach and in the administration of the Executive Office of the President.
The Head of State, with the approval of the Public Service Commission (PSC), appointed Ambassador Lazarus Amayo as the Special Envoy of the African Union Champion for Institutional Reforms.
Ambassador Amayo, in his new capacity, will support the Ministry of Foreign & Diaspora Affairs in steering the President’s unique mandate as the African Union Champion for Institutional Reform.
“The Special Envoy is expected to play a critical role in driving AU’s institutional reforms in liaison with the State Department for Foreign Affairs and the African Union institutions,” a circular from the Office of the President reads in part.
Amb. Amayo is the outgoing ambassador of Kenya to the United States based in Washington DC. He has previously held several senior public positions, among them; Ambassador/Permanent Representative to the United Nations (2018-2020), High Commissioner of Kenya to the United Kingdom (2014-2018), the Permanent Representative of Kenya to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the Commonwealth Organization.
Amb. Amayo previously served as the Director for Europe and Commonwealth Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (2010-2014), High Commissioner of Kenya to Zambia and Malawi and Permanent Representative to COMESA (2006-2010), Kenya’s High Commissioner to India with concurrent accreditation to Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Singapore (1999-2004).
Deputy Comptroller
President Ruto has also re-established the position of Deputy Comptroller of State House and appointed Simon Mwangi Kamau- Gikuru to the role.
Gikuru is an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya with over a decade of experience in law, management, strategic planning, policy formulation, financial administration, consultancy, logistics, and conflict resolution.
He is the immediate former Secretary General of the Amani National Congress Party and has previously worked as Managing Associate at Chege Kamau & Company Advocates and the Group Managing Director of Amoo Holdings International Limited, a regional logistics firm that had operations in Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and DRC.
Gikuru holds a Master of Law (LL.M) degree from the University of Nairobi, a postgraduate diploma in law from the Kenya School of Law and a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) degree from Makerere University, Uganda.
He has also undertaken postgraduate training in Global Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the internationally acclaimed Manning School of Business, University of Massachusetts.
