Kenyan diplomat Martin Kimani has been appointed Assistant Secretary-General for Africa at the United Nations, in a move that hands one of the continent’s most respected foreign policy voices a senior role shaping the world body’s engagement with Africa.
The appointment, announced by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, places Kimani within the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations, where he will help steer the UN’s political and security strategy across the continent at a time of mounting conflict and instability in several regions.
Kimani is best known internationally for his tenure as Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations between 2020 and 2024, during which he delivered a widely circulated address to the UN Security Council in February 2022 defending African sovereignty and territorial integrity in the context of Russia’s actions in Ukraine. The speech drew comparisons between Africa’s own colonial-era border disputes and the principle that borders, however imperfect, should not be redrawn by force.
Before his UN posting, Kimani served as Kenya’s special envoy for countering violent extremism and headed the country’s National Counter Terrorism Centre, giving him deep experience in security and peacebuilding issues that are expected to inform his new UN brief. He also spent time at the Intergovernmental Authority on Development’s conflict early warning unit earlier in his career.
Since leaving his ambassadorial post, Kimani has been President and Chief Executive of the Africa Center in New York, a think tank focused on strengthening the continent’s security institutions and civil-military relations, a role he has held since April 2025.
He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of New Hampshire and a master’s and doctorate in war studies from King’s College London.
Kimani’s elevation is being viewed in diplomatic circles as recognition of Kenya’s growing influence in multilateral affairs, coming at a time when Nairobi has sought a more prominent voice on peace and security matters across the continent. His new role will see him work closely with UN peacekeeping missions and political offices across Africa, several of which are grappling with active conflicts, contested elections and humanitarian emergencies.
Officials familiar with the transition say Kimani is expected to take up his new UN duties in the coming weeks, with further details of his mandate to be outlined by the Secretary-General’s office in due course.