Judge Phoebe Okowa and President William Ruto at State House on February 3, 2026/PCS
President William Ruto has congratulated Judge Phoebe Okowa on her historic election to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), making her the first Kenyan to serve on the court since 1945.
Speaking at State House, Nairobi, President Ruto said her election “reflects the strong confidence of UN Member States in her credentials, experience, and integrity.”
He described her success as a sign of “not only personal excellence, but also our nation’s continued commitment to contributing distinguished professionals to the multilateral system.”
President Ruto reaffirmed “the government’s unwavering support as she takes up this important international responsibility.”
Who is Prof Phoebe Okowa
Prof Okowa is a lawyer and professor of Public International Law and Director of Graduate Studies at Queen Mary University of London.
In 2021, she was elected to the International Law Commission for a period of five years, starting January 1, 2023, becoming the first African woman to serve as a member of the Commission.
In 2016, she was appointed a Member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague by Kenya.
An advocate of the High Court of Kenya, she has acted as counsel and consultant to governments and non-governmental organisations on questions of international law before domestic and international courts including the ICJ.
Kenya nominated her for election to the UN International Law Commission (ILC) in May 2021.
She was co-nominated by the United Kingdom and endorsed by the African Union.
Okowa received 162 votes in the United Nations General Assembly. ILC is a body of experts responsible for helping develop and codify international law.
Under the ILC Statute, its members “shall be persons of recognised competence in international law.”
It is composed of 34 individuals who are elected by the United Nations General Assembly for a five year term.
Okowa was born in Kericho on January 1, 1965.
She graduated at the top of her class with a Bachelor of Law (LLB) with First Class Honours from the University of Nairobi in 1987.
Okowa was the first woman to be awarded a first-class honours degree in the history of the Faculty of Law of the University of Nairobi.
She was called to the Kenyan Bar as an advocate in 1990.
Okowa then studied at Wadham College, Oxford, on a Foreign and Commonwealth Office Scholarship, obtaining the degree of Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL) in 1990.
She completed her doctoral thesis (D.Phil.) at Oxford in 1994 under the supervision of Professor Sir Ian Brownlie, the Chichele Professor of International Law.