The Kenyan business leader will take over from Lise Kingo as Executive Director of the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative on June 17, 2020.

25 May, 2020 – António Guterres, Secretary – General of the United Nations, announced the appointment of Sanda Ojiambo as Executive Director of the United Nations Global Compact on 22 May, 2020. She is the second woman in this position after Lisa Kingo. The Secretary -General is deeply grateful to Lise Kingo for her dedication and strategic leadership, for guiding the work of Global Compact and broadening the contribution of the Global Compact to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals.

Ms. Ojiambo, who assumes the role on June 17, 2020, will use her 20 years of experience to lead United Nations Global Compact into its next phase to mobilize a global movement of sustainable businesses and stakeholders and bring the full weight of the private sector to bear to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Since 2010, she has served as Head of Sustainable Business and Social Impact at Safaricom Plc in Kenya. Ms. Ojiambo was also the Senior Manager of Safaricom and MPESA Foundations, Kenya from 2008 to 2010, In this role, she was responsible for the implementation of several cooperation initiatives between Safaricom and UN agencies. Throughout her career, she has built and managed important relationships with companies and civil society organizations, including her capacity development work in Somalia with UNDP and CARE International. Ms. Ojiambo holds a Master of Arts in Public Policy from the University of Minnesota, USA, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and International Development from McGill University, Canada.

Lise Kingo with Sanda Ojiambo in September 2018 in New York.

Lise Kingo, who announced at the end of last year that she would be stepping down as Executive Director after five years in June, welcomed the Secretary-General’s appointment.

“I am happy to hand over the baton to such a strong woman leader from the Global South to take the UN Global Compact into its next chapter. I have immense confidence that Sanda’s global experience, deep integrity, and inspiring vision will advance the impact of the UN Global Compact and accelerate our efforts to mobilize a global movement of sustainable companies and stakeholders to create the world we want,” she said.

Kingo will pass the baton to the next Executive Director on June 16, 2020 at the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit. This event will celebrate the 20th anniversary of United Nations Global Compact. This Leaders Summit will bring together inspiring speakers, including CEOs, the United Nations, civil society organizations and academics. We are 26 hours together for a conversation in which we address various topics, including: “How can we rebuild more inclusive economies and societies to set a new course for a socially just, low-carbon and climate-resilient world, where no one is left behind?”

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