Najib Balala (born 20 September 1967) is a Kenyan politician, the former Cabinet Secretary for Tourism, and the immediate former. He traces his ancestral origin to the hadhrami people of Yemen. M.P. for Mvita Constituency. He has been the party leader of The Republican Congress Party of Kenya (RC), that was a partner of the Jubilee Coalition.

Early life and education

Balala attended Serani Boys primary school, and Kakamega High School, a national school. He studied Business Administration and International Urban Management and Leadership at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...

, and the

John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

Experience and career

*Prior to venturing into public life, Najib Balala worked in private sector tourism, and eventually joined a family tea and coffee trading business *Secretary of The Swahili Cultural Centre (1993–1996) *Chairman of Coast Tourist Association (1996–1999) *Mayor of Mombasa (1998–1999) *Chairman, Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Mombasa Chapter) (2000–2003) *Member of Parliament for Mvita Constituency (27 Dec 2002 – 15 Dec 2007) *Minister for Gender, Sports, Culture and Social Services (7 Jan 2003 – 31 June 2004) *Acting Minister for Labour (Jan – June 2003) *Minister for National Heritage (31 June – 21 Nov 2005) *Member of Parliament for Mvita Constituency (27 Dec 2007 – 15 Jan 2013) *Chairman of the UNWTO Executive Council (11 Nov 2011 – March 2012) *Minister for Tourism (17 Apr 2008 – 26 March 2012) *Cabinet Secretary for Mining (15 May 2013 – June 2015) *Cabinet Secretary for Tourism (June 2015 to 2022)

Politics

Balala began his political career as the Mayor of Mombasa, Kenya. He was then elected to a Mvita parliamentary seat in the 2002 general elections. Prior to that, Balala served as vice-chairman of Kenya Tourism Board (KTB), Chairman of All Local Government Association of Kenya, and Chairman of Mombasa and Coast Tourist Association. Balala was the longest serving Minister for Tourism, a position he held from the beginning of 2008 until 26 March 2012, when he was dismissed during a cabinet reshuffle. He formed The Republican Congress Party of Kenya (RC) in April 2012 that became a principal partner in the

Jubilee Coalition A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...

with President

Uhuru Kenyatta Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta (born 26 October 1961) is a Kenyan politician who served as the fourth president of Kenya from 2013 to 2022. Kenyatta was chosen by Daniel Arap Moi as his preferred successor, but Kenyatta was defeated by opposition le ...

( TNA),

William Samoei Ruto William Kipchirchir Samoei Arap Ruto (born 21 December 1966) is a Kenyan politician who is serving as the fifth and current president of Kenya since 13 September 2022. Prior to becoming president, he served as the 11th deputy president of Ken ...

( URP), and

Charity Ngilu Charity Kaluki Ngilu (born 28 January 1952) is a Kenyan politician and the second governor elected for Kitui County. She unsuccessfully vied to be President of the Republic of Kenya in 1997. She served as Minister for Health from 2003 until 200 ...

( Narc). As Cabinet Secretary for Mining he has revoked licenses issued by the previous government. He has been accused of corruption by Cortec Mining for requesting a bribe of nearly $1 million for the reissuing of the license.

Honors and awards

* Silver Star Medal by President * E.G.H (Elder of Golden Heart) Medal by President * Africa Tourism Minister 2009. * Best African Minister for Tourism 2010. * Vice-president

UNWTO The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations specialized agency entrusted with the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. Its headquarters are in Madrid, Spain. UNWTO is the leading internat ...

World Tourism Organization * Chairman

World Tourism Organization. * World Travel and Tourism Council WTT Global Champion.

References

* http://www.najibbalala.com/home.html * https://web.archive.org/web/20170718210926/http://www2.unwto.org/

External links

*
Scribd account
* http://sabahionline.com/en_GB/articles/hoa/articles/newsbriefs/2013/08/06/newsbrief-07 * http://www.corruptionwatch.org.za/content/dont-bow-bribery-demands-officials {{DEFAULTSORT:Balala, Najib 1967 births Living people Government ministers of Kenya People from Mombasa Hadhrami people Kenyan Muslims Kenyan people of Yemeni descent Alumni of Kakamega School United States International University alumni