National Assembly Approve Mutahi Kagwe, Kabogo & Lee Kinyanjui as CSs

The National Assembly on Thursday approved the nominations of Mutahi Kagwe, William Kabogo, and Lee Kinyanjui to serve as cabinet secretaries for Agriculture, Information, Communication and the Digital Economy, and Trade respectively.

In a special sitting on Thursday, the lawmakers concluded that the three nominees demonstrated knowledge of the respective sectors during the vetting period.

“Mutahi Kagwe demonstrated knowledge of topical, administrative, and technical issues touching on the portfolios to which he had been nominated and has the requisite abilities, academic qualifications and professional experience to be approved for an appointment,” read the National Assembly’s statement in part.

Kagwe was a CS of Health in former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration. In President William Ruto’s Cabinet, he takes over the Agriculture slot from Dr Andrew Karanja.

The appointment committee also noted, “William Kabogo demonstrated knowledge of topical, administrative and technical issues touching on the portfolios to which he had been nominated; and has the requisite abilities, academic qualifications and professional experience to be approved for appointment.”

Kabogo, the former Governor of Kiambu County, is set to replace Margaret Nyambura Ndung’u in the ICT slot.

Lee Kinyanjui is poised to take over from Salim Mvurya whom the President reassigned to the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports.

Kinyanjui possesses experience in local governance as a former Governor of Nakuru County. His understanding of trade dynamics at both local and national levels will be essential in promoting trade policies that benefit various sectors within Kenya.

“Lee Kinyanjui, nominee for appointment as CS for Investments, Trade and Industry, demonstrated knowledge of topical, administrative and technical issues touching on the portfolios to which they had been nominated; and has the requisite abilities, academic qualifications and professional experience to be approved for an appointment,” the appointments committee vouched.

At the same time, the National Assembly approved appointments of 8 persons to the Public Service Commission (PSC) including Vice Chairperson Mary Kimonye, Boya Molu, and Francis Meja as members await gazettement.

The process of appointing a new cabinet secretary involved several steps including the nomination of names by the president, who forwarded the names for vetting by the National Assembly’s Committee on Appointments.

Following a thorough vetting by the Appointments Committee on January 14, the committee tabled their reports before Parliament.

These appointments are significant as they come at a time when Kenya is focusing on enhancing its agricultural productivity, advancing technological integration across sectors, and improving trade relations both locally and internationally.