Kenya’s nominee for the post of a judge of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Professor Phoebe Okowa, cruised to victory after a historic vote by the United Nations General Assembly and the UN Security Council.
Okowa was duly elected by both the UN General Assembly and the UN Security Council on 12 November 2025, to fill a vacancy on the ICJ. She will serve the remainder of the term, which ends in February 2027, after which Kenya will seek her election for a full nine-year term starting in 2027.
Her victory came after four rounds of voting, during which she defeated three other candidates. Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’oei announced Phoebe Okowa’s victory, describing it as a demonstration of confidence in Prof. Okowa’s judicial competence and Kenya’s standing.
“I commend our New York and Geneva teams for leading the charge,” Korir stated.
The position fell vacant after the resignation of Judge Abdulqawi Yusuf from Uganda, which took effect on September 30, 2025.
Kenya’s nominee secured 106 votes out of 185 in the UN General Assembly, exceeding the 97 votes required for a majority, and obtained eight of the 15 votes in the UN Security Council, the minimum needed to win the seat.
The candidate was jointly endorsed by Kenya, Namibia, Colombia and the Netherlands, Romania, South Africa, Sweden, and Vanuatu. The newly elected judge will serve until February 5, 2027.
Kenya Wins ICJ Post Following Victory of Phoebe Okow
Following her victory, several Kenyans congratulated her on her new role. Maurice Makoloo, Kenya’s Ambassador to Austria, said, “Hearty congratulations to Justice Prof. Phoebe Okowa. Well-deserved recognition of your credentials. Wishing you well in the days ahead.”
On her part, Kenya’s High Commissioner to Canada, Carolyne Kamende, said, “MashaAllah! Congratulations, Prof. Phoebe Okowa.”
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Another Kenyan, Martin Owuor, said, “Congratulations to Prof. Phoebe Okowa on her election as a judge of the @CIJ_ICJ. Kudos to both @KenyaMissionUN and @ForeignOfficeKE for running an excellent campaign, marking the first time since Kenya became a member of the @UN to have its national as a Judge at the @CIJ_ICJ.”
Kemoli Sagala also extended his congratulations: “Congratulations to Kenya. A great choice; strategic fit. Congratulations to Prof. Okowa and MF&DA.”
Phoebe Okowa, a member of the International Law Commission, was nominated for election as a Judge of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on March 1, 2025.
Profile of the Newly Elected ICJ Judge
Professor Phoebe Okowa is a distinguished Professor of Public International Law and Director of Graduate Studies at Queen Mary University of London, where she joined as a senior lecturer in 2002.
An advocate of the High Court of Kenya, the nominee has acted as counsel and consultant to governments and NGOs on international law questions before domestic and international courts, including the ICJ.
On November 12, 2021, she made history by being elected to the International Law Commission at the 76th session of the UN General Assembly. Prof. Okowa secured 162 votes through a secret ballot, becoming the first African woman elected to the ILC.
Education Background
Previously, she taught Public International Law, Constitutional Law, and Private International Law at the University of Bristol from 1994 to 2001 and held visiting appointments at the Universities of Lille, Helsinki, Stockholm, and WZB Berlin Social Science Center for Global Constitutionalism.
Phoebe has also lectured for the UN at its Regional Course on International Law for Africa.
In 2011 and 2015, she served as the Hauser Global Visiting Professor of Law at New York University School of Law. In 2017, she was nominated as an arbitrator at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. She has been serving as a member of the Legal Committee at the Commission of Small Island States and International Law since 2021.
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The distinguished Public International Law expert graduated with First Class Honours in Law (LLB) from the University of Nairobi in 1987.
She then attended the University of Oxford on a Foreign and Commonwealth Office Scholarship, earning a Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL) in 1990. Prof. Okowa completed her doctoral thesis (D.Phil) at Oxford under the supervision of the Chichele Professor of International Law, Ian Brownlie QC.
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