Rebecca Miano Makes History As Kenya's First Female Attorney General

President William Ruto has begun to unveil his new-look Cabinet, nominating Rebecca Miano, former Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry, as the new Attorney General.

This move comes as part of Ruto’s effort to form a new, broad-based cabinet aimed at driving transformative changes in Kenya.

Miano's nomination will be subjected to vetting by the National Assembly. Should she be approved, she will replace Justin Muturi, the former National Assembly Speaker and Attorney General, and make history as the country's first female Attorney General.

Before Muturi, past Attorney Generals since Kenya gained independence in 1963 were all men and they included Charles Mugane Njonjo (1963–1979), James B. Karugu (1980–1981), Joseph Kamere (1981–1983), Matthew Guy Muli (1983–1991), Amos Wako (1991–2011), Githu Muigai (2011–2018) and Paul Kihara Kariuki (2018–2022).

Miano, despite numerous reports by research firms ranking her among the worst-performing Cabinet Secretaries, has been a favourite of both the public and President Ruto since she took over the Trade docket.

However, she was one of the CSs dismissed by the Head of State on July 11.with Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi being the only one retained. Mudavadi will continue to serve as the head of all ministries until the new cabinet is fully constituted.

Miano does have a tough task waiting for her of cleaning up the reputation of the AG's office after Muturi at the tail end of his tenure as AG, faced criticism for allegedly misadvising the government on various issues, although he has consistently denied these claims.

His tenure as AG saw reports suggesting his advice was often overlooked, a situation that came to light when a local daily claimed his office was not consulted on key government decisions, such as the deployment of the military during protests against the Finance Bill 2024.

Furthermore, the nomination and potential appointment might face headwinds owing to a petition filed in court by Nakuru Doctor and law student, Dr Magare Gikenyi challenging Muturi's ouster.

Rebecca Miano Background

The 58-year-old had notably replaced Moses Kuria in the Trade docket in October 2023 in a Cabinet reshuffle by President Ruto, with Kuria's reshuffle making most of the headlines given his brash demeanour, especially on social media.

Miano has amassed over 30 years of experience in the energy sector, earning recognition in the continent as a business leader.

The award-winning corporate guru is an expert in different areas including the renewable energy sector, structuring global business projects, and making regulatory frameworks for sustainable development.

Other areas Miano is credited with include business law, corporate governance and policy development.

Before being appointed a CS, Miano served as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Kenya Electricity Generating Company PLC (KenGen), a position she has held since October 2017.

"She is focused on growing KenGen’s footprint in geothermal development across Africa, and under her leadership, the company has successfully implemented several large geothermal projects in the continent," KenGen describes her achievement.

Miano also founded the Pink Energy forum in KenGen to address female and gender parity to close the gap within the company.

Previously, from 2008 to 2017, she was the Company Secretary and Legal Affairs Director. She is a respectable lawyer with a career in law and corporate governance and has been responsible for driving the corporate governance agenda in the company, providing guidance and support to the Board and has been the Secretary to the Board and all its Committees.

Awards and Achievements

Miano has been recognised by different global institutions, celebrating her contribution to the energy sector. In November 2019, she was appointed to the Board of Global Compact Network.

Seven months later, in July 2020, she joined the World Bank Group’s Advisory Council on Gender and Development.

She has also served on the Finance Committee of the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) and is a member of several boards alongside chairing the giant Stima Sacco Board. 

In 2010, the KenGen CEO won the Company Secretary of the Year award in the Champions of Governance Awards series.

Attorney-General nominee, Rebecca Miano. /STATE DEPARTMENT FOR INVESTMENT PROMOTION

Her exemplary leadership saw former President Uhuru Kenyatta confer her the Moran of the Order of the Burning Spear (MBS) in recognition of her outstanding service to the nation in 2019. 

Miano was also feted among the Top 100 Women CEOs by Reset Global People in partnership with Pulse and Avance Media, and named one of the top 25 movers and shakers in Africa in 2021 by the African Energy Chamber. 

Education

She holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree with Honours, a diploma in Law and Post-graduate studies in Comparative Law. In 2010, she completed the Advanced Management Programme at Strathmore University. This probably might explain why she has been nominated as AG.

She is a registered Certified Public Secretary of Kenya and is a member of the Institute of Certified Public Secretaries of Kenya (ICPSK) and the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).