President Ruto was named one of the most influential Africans in 2023 by the premier magazine ‘New African’.
This comes a month after US based ‘Time Magazine’ cited him among the 100 most influential leaders on climate change.
According to ‘New African’ editors, Ruto has “displayed a remarkable combination of steely resolve with disarming charm since he took office as Head of State a little over a year ago.
“On the domestic front, it has not been plain sailing and his popularity is waning. Yet he has faced down a series of unofficial strikes called for by the opposition leader Raila Odinga, while sticking to his agenda to remove food and fuel subsidies, to attract much-needed financial support from the Bretton Woods institutions and to reduce the nation’s external debts,” the Magazine’s article read in part.
“He has encouraged the youth to follow his entrepreneurial example and ‘hustle’ for their livelihoods and recently announced the end of visa requirements for all visitors to the country. This will certainly lead to a considerable upsurge of business and leisure visitors and lay the basis for increased investments, especially in manufacturing and services.”
“But it is on the international stage that Ruto has cut a bold, charismatic figure. The inaugural Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi in September, on which Ruto staked his reputation as a global leader of substance, was a major success. Africa secured $23bn of green funding and made a powerful declaration on new global taxes and a restructuring of the financial architecture – that formed a backdrop to the COP28 Summit in UAE. Ruto’s most profound impact was to completely overturn the accepted.”
Other Kenyans on the list include, Equity Bank CEO James Mwangi, historian Chao Maina, Climate Strategist James Irungu, Environmentalist Wanjira Mathai, Celebrity Chef Ali Mandhry, filmmaker Wanuri Kahiu, Marathoner Kelvin Kiptum, World 1500 champion Faith Kipyegon.