Lydia Wanyoto Mutende (née Lydia Wanyoto), is a Ugandan lawyer, politician and diplomat, who served as the Deputy Special Representative of the Chairperson of African Union Commission (DSRCC), based in

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...

, Ethiopia. From July 2014 until August 2014, she temporarily served as Head of the African Union Mission to Somalia.

Early life and education

Wanyoto was born in

Mbale Mbale is a city in the Eastern Region of Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative, and commercial center of Mbale District and the surrounding sub-region. Location Mbale is approximately , by road, northeast of Kampala, Uganda's capita ...

, in the Eastern Region of Uganda circa 1971. She attended ''Fairway Primary School'', in Mbale, where she obtained her primary school leaving certificate. She transferred to

Gayaza High School Gayaza High School is the oldest all-girls boarding secondary school covering grades 8 to 13 (Secondary 1 to 6) in Uganda. The school is Church-founded, government-aided and accredited by the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Sports ...

, in

Wakiso District Wakiso District is a district in the Central Region of Uganda that partly encircles Kampala, Uganda's capital city. The town of Wakiso is the site of the district headquarters. Kira, the country's second largest city and suburb of Kampala, is i ...

, where she obtained her Ordinary Level certificate. She completed high school at Makerere High School, where she obtained her

High School Diploma A high school diploma or high school degree is a North American academic school leaving qualification awarded upon high school graduation. The high school diploma is typically obtained after a course of study lasting four years, from grade 9 to gra ...

. She was admitted to the

Uganda Christian University Uganda Christian University (UCU) is a private church-founded university administered by the Church of Uganda. It was the first private University in Uganda to be awarded a charter by the Government of Uganda. Location UCU's main campus, with a ...

(UCU), where she graduated with a Bachelor of Education in Languages, specializing in

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

French language French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Nor ...

and

Kiswahili Swahili, also known by its local name , is the native language of the Swahili people, who are found primarily in Tanzania, Kenya and Mozambique (along the East African coast and adjacent litoral islands). It is a Bantu language, though Swahili ...

. She went on to obtain a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degree, also from (UCU). She followed that with a

Diploma in Legal Practice A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offici ...

, awarded by the

Law Development Centre The Law Development Centre (LDC) is an educational institution in Uganda for higher learning that offers various legal courses ranging from one month to one year. Overview The LDC is the only institution in Uganda that offers the Bar Course leadi ...

, in Kampala. Her first master's degree, a Master of Arts in Human Rights Law, was obtained from

Makerere University Makerere University, Kampala (; Mak) is Uganda's largest and oldest institution of higher learning, first established as a technical school in 1922. It became an independent national university in 1970. Today, Makerere University is composed of ni ...

, Uganda's largest and oldest public university. Her second master's degree, a Master of Arts in Gender and Women Studies, was also awarded by Makerere University.

Career

In 1995, while a student at Makerere University, Wanyoto became active in campus politics and was elected as Chairperson of Marty Stuart Hall, one of the female halls of residence on campus. During the 1995 Constituent Assembly, she volunteered in the parliament chamber, helping the Assembly Chairperson with paperwork. In 2001, Wanyoto was elected to the first

East African Legislative Assembly , native_name_lang = , transcription_name = , legislature = , coa_pic = , coa_res = , coa_alt = , foundation = 30 November 2001 , house_type = , body ...

, because they remembered her free service during the Constituent Assembly days, despite never having served as a member of the Uganda's parliament. She served in that role from 4 February 2001 until 10 February 2006.

Family

Lydia Wanyoto was married to the late James Shinyabulo Mutende (26 February 1962 – 2 October 2015), the former State Minister of Industry from 27 May 2011 until 2 October 2015.

Other considerations

Lydia Wanyoto is a member of the board of directors of ''Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment'' (ACODE), a

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and Ruba ...

-based

think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...

. She is also a member of the committee that was created to establish the

National Defence College, Uganda National Defence College, Uganda is a National Security and Strategic Studies training and educational institution in Uganda. Location The college is located in Njeru, in Buikwe District. This is near the city of Jinja, approximately , by roa ...

. In April 2019, Wanyoto was appointed to the board of directors of the National Planning Authority of Uganda, to serve a five-year term, renewable one time.

References

External links

Website of Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wanyoto, Lydia Living people 1971 births Law Development Centre alumni Makerere University alumni Members of the East African Legislative Assembly National Resistance Movement politicians People educated at Gayaza High School People from Eastern Region, Uganda People from Mbale District Uganda Christian University alumni Ugandan diplomats 21st-century Ugandan lawyers Ugandan women diplomats 21st-century Ugandan women politicians 21st-century Ugandan politicians Ugandan women lawyers 21st-century women lawyers