Kenya has officially nominated Professor Phoebe Okowa for election as a judge to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council in 2026.
The announcement was made through Kenya’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations via a diplomatic note addressed to the Permanent Mission of Djibouti, which serves as the Coordinator of the Eastern African Sub-region on Candidatures. The note, dated February 27, highlighted Okowa’s qualifications and Kenya’s confidence in her ability to contribute effectively to the ICJ’s work.
“Kenya presents its compliments to the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Djibouti to the United Nations and has the honour to inform of the nomination of Professor Phoebe Okowa by the Kenya National Group to the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) for election as a judge of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) during the elections to be held at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council in 2026,” the note stated.
Kenya further requested Djibouti to circulate the nomination to other African nations for support, emphasizing Okowa’s expertise in international law and her capability to serve at the ICJ.
Professor Okowa is a distinguished scholar in Public International Law and serves as the Director of Graduate Studies at Queen Mary University of London. She has previously taught at the University of Bristol and held visiting appointments at the Universities of Lille, Helsinki, Stockholm, and WZB Berlin Social Science Center for Global Constitutionalism.
As an advocate of the High Court of Kenya, Okowa has provided counsel and consultancy on international law matters before domestic and international courts, including the ICJ. In 2017, she was nominated as an arbiter to the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague.
Okowa’s academic excellence is evident in her credentials. She graduated top of her class with a First-Class Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from the University of Nairobi and later pursued her Bachelor of Civil Law and a doctoral degree at the University of Oxford.
Her nomination underscores Kenya’s commitment to strengthening its presence in international judicial institutions and promoting African representation at the ICJ.
