Ruto leads global push for Njoki Ndung’u in ICC judge race

President William Ruto has intensified Kenya’s diplomatic push to secure a seat at the International Criminal Court (ICC), personally lobbying African and European leaders to support Justice Njoki Ndung’u’s candidature during high-level engagements linked to the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi.

The campaign gathered pace on Sunday evening shortly after French President Emmanuel Macron arrived at State House, Nairobi, when Ruto introduced the former Supreme Court judge to the French leader as Kenya’s official candidate for election to the ICC bench.

Kenya’s lobbying efforts also reached other visiting heads of state attending the summit, with Ruto presenting Justice Njoki to Côte d’Ivoire President Alassane Ouattara, Liberia President Joseph Boakai, and Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio as Nairobi sought to build support ahead of the elections.

Officials familiar with the meetings said Kenya has been presenting a united message to international leaders, insisting that Justice Njoki is among Africa’s most experienced and accomplished jurists and well qualified to serve at the Hague-based court.

Justice Njoki was among the first judges appointed to Kenya’s Supreme Court after the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution and served at the apex court for more than 10 years, where she helped shape major constitutional and criminal justice decisions.

She is also credited with spearheading Kenya’s Sexual Offences Act, a law widely seen as strengthening protections for survivors of gender-based violence and improving accountability for sexual crimes.

Beyond Kenya, Justice Njoki also played a role in the formulation of the African Union’s Maputo Protocol, one of Africa’s landmark treaties on women’s rights.

Her supporters argue that her long judicial experience and advocacy for vulnerable groups place her in a strong position to serve at the ICC, which handles cases involving genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.

Kenya’s outreach to leaders from countries such as France and Sierra Leone is viewed as strategic, given that both nations are among the 125 state parties to the Rome Statute currently represented on the ICC bench.

The ongoing Africa Forward Summit has brought together an unusually large number of presidents, senior diplomats, investors, and policymakers in Nairobi, giving Kenya a rare diplomatic platform to directly market its candidate to influential voting blocs ahead of the ICC elections.

For Nairobi, the campaign is both a diplomatic effort and an attempt to place one of Kenya’s most prominent legal figures on the global judicial stage.

The summit, held under the theme “Africa Forward: Africa–France Partnerships for Innovation and Growth,” is expected to shape a new phase of relations between African nations and France through partnerships centred on innovation, investment, and practical cooperation.

Discussions during the summit are focusing on seven major areas, including green industrialisation and energy transition, reform of the international financial system, blue economy development, sustainable agriculture and food systems, artificial intelligence and digital technologies, resilient health systems, as well as peace and security.

One of the key events during the summit is the Africa Forward Business Forum at the University of Nairobi, which is expected to attract more than 2,500 chief executives, investors, entrepreneurs, start-ups, SMEs, sovereign institutions, and policymakers.

The forum will feature CEO roundtables, investment announcements, business matchmaking sessions, innovation showcases, youth entrepreneurship platforms, and sector-based discussions covering infrastructure, logistics, AI, health manufacturing, creative industries, agriculture, connectivity, and clean energy.