Billionaire Meg Whitman Confirmed as the New US Ambassador to Kenya

The US Senate on Thursday approved billionaire Margaret “Meg” Whitman as the new American ambassador to Kenya following her nomination by President Joe Biden.

Biden picked Whitman for the position on December 8th last year but her nomination had been pending approval by the US Senate. The decision by the Senate means that Congress has confirmed Whitman as the American representative in Kenya.

Whitman is expected to take over from Eric Kneedler, who became chargé d’affaires ad interim for Kenya in January following the exit of Kyle McCarter, who served as the US ambassador to Kenya from 2019 to 2021. 

“Kenya is a strategic partner of the United States, and if confirmed, I look forward to working with the Kenyan government on a wide variety of issues to advance peace, prosperity, and health in the country and throughout the region,” Whitman said in a statement following her nomination in December.

Whitman, commonly known by her nickname “Meg”, served as the CEO of Hewlett-Packard and then Hewlett Packard Enterprise from 2011 to 2017.  The 65-year-old currently serves on the board of Procter & Gamble and General Motors. 

"Margaret C. Whitman (Meg), a business executive and former candidate for Governor of California, is a Member of the Board of Procter & Gamble and General Motors, and National Board Chair at Teach for America," the White House said in a dispatch on December 9th, 2021.

Whitman, a billionaire former Republican, was a key financier of Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign. She is worth an estimated 4.5 billion USD, according to Forbes.

She will report to Nairobi at a time when the country is headed for general elections to elect President Kenyatta’s successor on August 9th.

Whitman will be the first US female ambassador to Kenya in more than two decades, since Prudence Bushnell in 1999.