Kenyan diplomat Ambassador Martin Kimani has been appointed United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Africa, taking up a senior role in the UN’s Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Department of Peace Operations (DPPA-DPO). UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced Kimani’s appointment on Tuesday. He succeeds Ghanaian diplomat Akyaa Pobee in the position. Kimani brings extensive diplomatic and peacebuilding experience to the new role, having previously served as Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York between 2020 and 2024.
He was also part of the UN Security Council from 2021 to 2022 during Kenya’s non-permanent membership. In October 2021, Kimani served as President of the Security Council. He also chaired the council’s Ad Hoc Working Group on Conflict Prevention and Resolution in Africa and co-chaired its Informal Expert Group on Climate and Security in 2022.
Before his latest appointment, Kimani served as President of the Executive Boards of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS). His career in Kenya has also included serving as Director of the National Counter Terrorism Centre and as the President’s Special Envoy for Countering Violent Extremism between 2015 and 2020.
Between 2012 and 2015, Kimani represented Kenya at the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN-Habitat. He previously served as Director of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Conflict Early Warning and Response Mechanism from 2011 to 2012.
Kimani has held several other international leadership positions, including President and Chief Executive Officer of The Africa Center, Executive Director of the Center on International Cooperation at New York University, and Deputy Director of the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center. In his new capacity, Kimani will oversee UN efforts focused on conflict prevention, mediation, preventive diplomacy and peacebuilding across Africa.
