Professor Phoebe Okowa is an eminent Kenyan legal scholar and advocate who has shattered glass ceilings to become a leading global authority in public international law.
A distinguished academic with a DPhil from Oxford University, she holds the prestigious position of Professor of Public International Law at Queen Mary University of London and is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya.
Her career is marked by a rigorous application of legal principles to complex global challenges, including environmental accountability and state responsibility, and she has advised governments and non-governmental organisations as counsel before international courts, including the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Her recent crowning achievement came in November 2025, when she was elected as a Judge of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the United Nations' principal judicial organ, for a nine-year term.
This historic election makes her the first Kenyan and the first African woman to serve as a judge on the world's highest court, a momentous personal triumph and a source of immense national pride.
Prior to this, her expertise had already placed her in esteemed global bodies; in 2021, she became the first African woman to be elected to the UN International Law Commission, an expert body responsible for codifying international law.
Her contributions have also been acknowledged with an Honorary Doctorate in Law from Stockholm University in 2024 and the Elder of the Order of the Burning Spear (EBS) national award from the Kenyan government in 2022 for her distinguished service.