Secretary-General Appoints Sanda Ojiambo of Kenya Executive Director, United Nations Global Compact

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres today announced the appointment of Sanda Ojiambo of Kenya as Executive Director of the United Nations Global Compact.  As the second woman to be appointed in the role, she will succeed Lise Kingo of Denmark, to whom the Secretary-General is deeply grateful for her dedication and strategic leadership in steering the work of the Global Compact and broadening its contribution to the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Due to assume her new position on 17 June, Ms. Ojiambo brings 20 years of experience to lead the Global Compact in its next phase, mobilize a global movement of sustainable companies and stakeholders, and bring the full weight of the private sector to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Ms. Ojiambo, served as Head of Sustainable Business and Social Impact at Safaricom PLC, in Kenya, since 2010, and as Senior Manager of the Safaricom and MPESA Foundations from 2008 until 2010, during which time she led the implementation of several public-private partnership initiatives between Safaricom and United Nations entities.

Throughout her career, Ms. Ojiambo has cultivated and managed relationships with key business entities and civil society organizations, including in her capacity development work in Somalia with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and CARE International.

Ms. Ojiambo holds a Master of Arts in public policy from the University of Minnesota, in the United States, and a Bachelor of Arts in economics and international development from McGill University, in Canada.

Launched in July 2000, the United Nations Global Compact is the Secretary‑General’s strategic policy and advocacy initiative calling for the alignment of business operations and strategies with 10 universal principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.  It also motivates companies to integrate the SDGs into their core business strategies and operations.

With more than 10,000 corporate participants and other stakeholders from over 160 countries engaged through 68 country networks, the Compact is the largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative in the world.  Endorsed by chief executive officers, it is a practical framework for the development, implementation and disclosure of sustainability policies and practices, committing businesses to sustainability and shared responsibility for achieving a better world.