Ababu Namwamba Declares His Wealth During UNEP Job Vetting: “Houses, Shares and Pension”

NAIROBI, Kenya – Ababu Namwamba, the nominee for Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), has declared his net worth at Ksh.500 million.

Namwamba disclosed this during his vetting before the National Assembly Committee of Defence, Intelligence, and Foreign Relations on Friday.

His assets include residential properties, business interests, shareholdings, and pension, marking a significant rise from his previous declaration of Ksh.425 million two years ago when he was vetted as Sports Cabinet Secretary.

“I have two residences in Nairobi and Busia, business interests, shareholdings, and pension. That has been compounded to Ksh.500 million,” Namwamba stated.

Namwamba did not provide detailed figures of his dividends but mentioned that his shareholdings are in major companies such as Safaricom, Cooperative Bank, and Kenya Power.

“I have indicated without providing specifics because ordinarily, you would not know the dividends accrued to you in a specific cycle,” he explained.

During the vetting, Namwamba expressed confidence in his suitability for the UNEP role, emphasizing his preparedness to represent Kenya effectively at the international level.

He also shared that President William Ruto had personally briefed him on the responsibilities of the position before the nomination was made public.

“The President invited me to a sitting to discuss this responsibility before it was made public. I know exactly what he expects of me in this role because he personally explained it to me,” Namwamba revealed.

Namwamba’s nomination comes alongside three others, including former ICT CS Margaret Nyambura Ndung’u, who was nominated as High Commissioner to Ghana but declined the offer citing personal reasons.

Gertrude Angote was nominated for the High Commission in Zimbabwe, and former Agriculture CS Andrew Karanja for Kenya’s Ambassador to Brazil.