The East African Community has officially sworn in the region’s first female Secretary General, Veronica Mueni Nduva, from Kenya, who now replaces her fellow countryman Peter Mathuki.
Ms Nduva took an oath of office at the South Sudan’s State House in Juba, during the 23rd Extra-Ordinary Meeting of the EAC Heads of State which was held virtually.
The meeting was headed by South Sudan’s President, Salva Kiir Mayardit, the current Chairperson of the Summit.
The new Secretary General said that her tenure would be dedicated to promoting deeper integration and development of the people of East Africa through strengthening economic integration encouraging innovation, entrepreneurship and job creation in addition to peace and security.
She disclosed that advanced social development would also be a priority for her with special attention being given to empowering women and youth who are the backbone of the society in the region.
During the meeting, the President of Tanzania Samia Suluhu Hassan singled out the challenges posed by climate change directing the new Secretary General to promote adaptation and mitigation to reduce the adverse impact of the phenomenon on EAC economies.
President Samia called for increased access to cleaner and affordable energy would enable the region to transition to cleaner and modern cooking solutions that would in turn deliver greater benefits in terms of emission reductions, forest preservation, protection of biodiversity, better health, increased productivity and gender equality.
In response to that, the new EAC Secretary General explained that to promote climate resilient growth, her office will continue addressing the pressing challenges of climate change collectively as a region.
“This includes promoting green energy, sustainable agriculture, conservation efforts and resource mobilization as a bloc,” she added.
Ms. Nduva further singled out institutional strengthening for effective implementation of policies and programs as another of her priorities, adding that enhancing inter-organ and inter-institutional coordination would be key to delivering on the mandate.
She pledged fidelity to the Treaty and said that it would serve as her guiding document throughout her tenure as Secretary General even as she promised to promote a culture of transparency, accountability and inclusivity at the Community.
Ms. Nduva replaces Peter Mutuku Mathuki who was recalled by the Republic of Kenya in March 2024 and redeployed as the country’s Ambassador to Moscow.
Prior to her appointment as SG, Ms. Nduva was the Principal Secretary in the State Department for Performance and Delivery Management in the Office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary and Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs.
She is an alumnus of the University of Nairobi (UoN) and an accomplished governance and public sector professional with a 24 years’ career spanning service in the Government of Kenya, EAC, US government and civil society.
Ms Nduva holds a BA in Political Science and Communication Studies from UoN. She also possesses vast experience in Human Resource Management and budgetary appropriations.
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