President Uhuru nominates Eugene Wamalwa as Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for Water and Irrigation

Nairobi, Kenya: President Uhuru Kenyatta has nominated Eugene Wamalwa as Cabinet Secretary for the newly created Ministry of Water and Irrigation.

Uhuru said the government realised the need to focus on water as a driver of agricultural development.

The President also nominated Amb. Dr. Monica Juma for the position of Secretary to the Cabinet to replace Francis Kimemia.

At the same time, Retired Major-General Gordon Kihalangwa has been nominated for the position of Principal Secretary, Department of Interior, Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government.

Mr. Nzioka Waita was appointed as Secretary of Delivery in the Executive Office of the President.

The National Assembly is expected to vet the nominees.

Biographical notes:

Eugene Wamalwa  

Born in Trans Nzoia. Member of Parliament in 2007-2013. A lawyer who has served as Minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs.

Amb. Dr. Monica Juma  

Served as Principal Secretary for Interior, having been transferred from the Ministry of Defence. Prior to being appointed Principal Secretary, Amb. Juma was Kenya's Ambassador Extra-Ordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, the Republic of Djibouti and Permanent Representative to the African Union, Inter- Governmental Authority on Development (lGAD) and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).

Amb. Dr. Juma has served as the Executive Director at the Africa Institute of South Africa (AISA), Pretoria, where she led policy research on African Affairs. Previously, Ambassador Juma also served as Executive Director at the Africa Policy Institute (API), Nairobi where she is currently a Senior Fellow; as a Senior Policy Analyst at the Safer Africa, Pretoria; and as a Research Associate at the International Peace Institute, New York.

She was also Lecturer in Politics and Research Director at the Centre for Refugee Studies, Moi University, Kenya; and Management Analyst at the Office of the President, Republic of Kenya.

Amb. Dr. Juma holds a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Oxford, Master of Arts (MA) and Bachelor of Arts (BA) from the University of Nairobi and Certificate in Refugees Studies from Oxford University.

Retired Major-General Gordon Kihalangwa  

Promoted to Principal Secretary from Director of Immigration, a post to which he was appointed last year.

Retired Major-General Kihalangwa is a dedicated and disciplined officer whose loyalty, integrity and competence are beyond reproach.

He has a wealth of experience in both security services and people management. He served as head of Military Police before he was elevated to Assistant Chief of Defence Forces responsible for personnel and logistics at the ministry headquarters.

Nzioka Waita

Aged 39, is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya of 13 years standing, a member of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and a Certified Public Secretary of the Institute of Certified Public Secretaries of Kenya (ICPSK).

He is a graduate of Law (LLB) from the University of Sheffield in the UK and is presently undertaking a Masters Law degree in Computer and Communications Law from Queen Mary, University of London.

Nzioka is currently the Director of Corporate Affairs at Safaricom, one of the leading integrated communications companies in Africa. As part of his role, Nzioka has been instrumental in positioning Safaricom as a key player in shaping and driving Kenya's digital inclusion agenda.

 Nzioka holds a number of non-executive director roles and sits on the Board Of Alpha Africa Asset Managers and The East African Marine Cable System.

In both his private and public engagements, Nzioka is very passionate about community service and aside from being a Trustee of the Safaricom Foundation, he sits on the Board of two other non-profit organisations, namely the African Braille Centre www.africanbraille.org which provides specialised Braille reading material for the visually impaired and Alive and Kicking Kenya www.aliveandkicking.org.uk a social charitable trust registered in the UK and having a local office in Kenya.