ADDIS ABABA, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, and the African Union Commission Chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat, on Tuesday announced the appointment of Lieutenant General Leonard Muriuki Ngondi of Kenya as Force Commander for the AU-UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID).
He succeeds Lieutenant General Frank Mushyo Kamanzi of Rwanda to whom the UN Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the AU Commission are grateful for his dedication and effective leadership as head of UNAMID military component, according to an AU statement.
Currently the Commandant of the National Defence College, a position he has held since 2016, Lieutenant General Ngondi has had a distinguished career with the Kenyan Defence Forces, spanning over 39 years, including as Commander Kenya Army (2015-2016), General Officer Commanding Western Command and General Officer Commanding Eastern Command, Chief Instructor Defence Staff College, Brigade Commander and Commandant School of Infantry.
Lieutenant General Ngondi has also served as Force Commander in the UN Mission in Liberia (2012) and Commanding Officer, Kenyan battalion (KENBATT) in the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (2000).
He was also deployed as part of the Kenyan contingent in the UN Transition Assistance Group in Namibia (1990).
Ngondi is a graduate of the Kenyan National Defence College and Defence Staff College, and he holds a Bachelor's degree in Human and Social Studies from the University of South Africa and is currently pursuing a Master's Degree in International Studies from University of Nairobi.
Born in 1959, he is married with three children, according to the statement.
