Her Excellency Mama Rachel Ruto is officially Kenya’s First Lady.
Rachel Ruto took over the role formally at the inauguration ceremony where President Dr William Samoei Ruto was publicly sworn into office and became the Commander in Chief of the Kenya Armed Forces.
The Office of the First Lady plays, as is established in the Constitution, a supportive role to the Presidency and promotes national goals and values.
As the outgoing First Lady, Margaret Kenyatta performed her last official duty when she met with Mama Rachel Ruto on Monday, to give her the official grand tour of State House. Rachel was at State House with President Dr Ruto for a meeting with the former First Family as part of the official handing-over process ahead of Tuesday’s swearing-in ceremony at Kasarani.
During her tenure, Margaret Kenyatta’s key focus was to ensure efficient and effective delivery of the improvement in the quality of life for Kenyans, especially mothers and children through the Beyond Zero Initiative.
Beyond Zero was conceived in June 2013 when Margaret Kenyatta, the then first lady of the Republic of Kenya, committed to heightening advocacy efforts aimed at reducing preventable maternal and child deaths, as well as the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis.
The campaign was later launched on 24th January 2014 with Mrs Kenyatta as its founder and patron.
In addition to the Beyond Zero campaign, the former first lady was also the Patron of numerous social and environmental organisations and oversaw the Pupils Reward Scheme (PURES) mentorship program.
As Kenya’s new first lady, even though she is known to be media shy, Rachel Ruto is Kenya’s best bet when it comes to filling Margaret Kenyatta’s role seamlessly.
Not only has her excellency served as the second lady for the last 10 years, but like her predecessor, she has spearheaded initiatives aimed at empowering women and the less privileged in society. She is also a champion of Food Systems Innovation, Nutrition, Mental Health and Wellness, Inclusivity, Climate Change and Entrepreneurship.
In 2009, Her Excellency Rachel Ruto established the ‘Mama’ organisation, from whence her name “Mama Rachel Ruto” comes, which consists of seven core programmes that catalyse socio-economic transformation in communities to achieve a quality holistic life through spirituality, collective agency, voice and influence.
Rachel Ruto is likely to continue being an ardent advocate for women’s rights and their empowerment through new and already established initiatives.
