President William Ruto has reassigned former Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba and Ambassador Joash Maangi in changes affecting Kenya’s foreign service.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, January 21, Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service Felix Koskei said the President had approved the reassignments following the completion of terms by some serving ambassadors and high commissioners.
According to the statement, the changes were necessary to fill vacancies created after the end of tenure for several heads of Kenya’s diplomatic missions abroad.
“His Excellency the President has sanctioned changes within the nation’s Foreign Service. The changes are necessitated by vacancies arising from the completion of the terms of service of serving ambassadors,” the statement said.
Under the new appointments, Ababu Namwamba has been reassigned as Kenya’s High Commissioner to Uganda, based in Kampala. He replaces Ambassador Joash Maangi.
Ambassador Maangi has in turn been reassigned as Kenya’s Ambassador to Brussels, Belgium, and to the European Union, taking over from Prof. Bitange Ndemo.
State House said the reassignments take effect immediately.
Namwamba’s latest appointment comes after holding several senior roles in government over the past two years. In July 2024, he was dropped from the Cabinet when President Ruto dissolved most of his Cabinet following widespread Gen Z-led protests calling for governance reforms and better service delivery.
At the time, Namwamba was serving as Cabinet Secretary for Youth Affairs, Sports and the Arts, a position he had held since October 2022. During his tenure, he was credited with efforts that led to the lifting of FIFA’s ban on Kenyan football, but he also faced scrutiny in Parliament over the management of national teams.
After several months out of government, Namwamba returned to public service in December 2024 when President Ruto nominated him as Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON).
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