Amina Mohamed is a nonresident senior fellow with the N7 Initiative at the Atlantic Council’s Middle East Programs. Her career in public service spans more than thirty-five years.

Mohamed has served the Kenyan government as cabinet secretary for the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and International Trade; Education, Science, and Technology; and Sports, Culture, and Heritage. Previously, she served as the permanent secretary for justice, national cohesion, and constitutional affairs; assistant secretary-general and deputy executive director of the United Nations (UN) Environment Programme; and ambassador and permanent representative to the UN, World Trade Organization, and the Conference on Disarmament. Mohamed is also an advocate of the High Court of Kenya.

Mohamed is the patron of the ALIVE Foundation and the chairman of the Trade Negotiations and Investment Forum. She is vice chairman of the Board of Trustees for the UN Institute for Training and Research, and is a member of the International Olympic Committee’s Ethics Commission. She is a member of the Board of Trustees for Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the World Motor Sports Council, and the Board of Governors of the Commonwealth of Learning. Additionally, she is a member of the Interpeace Board, the Advisory Board of the Africa Prosperity Network, and the Governing Council of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology. She serves as the patron of the Kenya Pedal Federation and is the chancellor of the International University of East Africa. Mohamed has previously served as a member of the Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters for the UN and as a member of the Board of Trustees for the UN Institute of Disarmament Research.

Mohamed holds a master’s degree in law, a doctorate in humane letters, and a doctor of letters degree. Mohamed was awarded the Elder of the Order of the Golden Heart and the Chief of the Burning Spear from the Republic of Kenya. She was also awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun by Emperor Akihito of Japan, the Nilen Award by the Republic of Sudan, and the Cavaliere dell’Ordine della Stella della Solidarietà Italiana by the president of Italy. She has been recognized as a UN Development Programme Champion and received the Adebisi Babatunde Thomas Entrepreneurship Institute Excellence in Diplomacy Award. Additionally, she was honored with the Women of Excellence Award.