President Ruto has become an everyman of international summitry but is he leaving his top advisors sidelined?, For a politician whose skills were seen as being centred entirely on domestic politics before winning the presidency in August 2022, William Ruto has quickly established a reputation as one of Africa's leading diplomatic players.
With economic woes at home, President Ruto is pitching himself as a foreign policy player – from climate finance to reform of the African Union, Few expected William Ruto to devote much time to foreign policy when he claimed the presidency after narrowly defeating Raila Odinga in last August's elections. After running an insurgent campaign based on appealing to Kenya's 'hustlers' – the country's millions of small businesspeople and traders – Ruto's aides knew that diplomacy was a weak link in their man's campaign. He entered State House last September with little support from regional neighbours or the wider international system and several western states made little attempt to conceal their disappointment at his win.
Close allies of the president and his deputy dominate the new team, with a sprinkling of technocrats, but few women, After a narrow election win and a slim majority of MPs backing him in parliament, President William Ruto is taking no chances with his first cabinet. His team is dominated by ultra-loyalists, a few technocrats and fewer women.
Battle for control of the organisation raises questions about its future and relevance in changing geopolitics, Baroness Patricia Scotland won re-election as the Secretary General of the Commonwealth in a tight contest and bad-tempered finale to its summit in Kigali between 20 and 26 June, the organisation's first in-person meeting for over two years.