Kipruto Rono Arap Kirwa (born 1957) is a Kenyan politician who served as the 15th

Minister of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

between 2003 and 2008 in the Kibaki administration. He previously served as Member of Parliament for

Cherangany Constituency Cherangany Constituency (also spelled Cherangani Constituency), comprises the larger Trans Nzoia East District; otherwise known as Cherangani Sub-County, with an approximate area of 556.9 square km. It is an electoral constituency in Kenya, whic ...

between 1990 and 2002.

Early life and education

Kirwa was born in Tanganyika, currently

Republic of Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

. His father, Kiprono Cheptile Arap Sirng'ewo was a farmer and livestock keeper, who was among the Nandi people evicted from their fertile ancestral lands by the British colonialists in

Nandi County Nandi County is a county in Kenya in the North Rift, occupying an area of 2,884.4 square kilometres. Its capital, Kapsabet, is the largest town in the county while other towns include Mosoriot, Tinderet, Kobujoi, Kaiboi, Kabiyet and Nandi H ...

to pave the way for white settlers to develop the area that became the

white Highlands The White Highlands is an area in the central uplands of Kenya. It was traditionally the homeland of indigenous Central Kenyan communities up to the colonial period, when it became the centre of European settlement in colonial Kenya, and between ...

in the

Rift Valley A rift valley is a linear shaped lowland between several highlands or mountain ranges produced by the action of a geologic rift. Rifts are formed as a result of the pulling apart of the lithosphere due to extensional tectonics. The linear ...

. The late colonial senior chief Elijah Cheruiyot oversaw the issuing of the temporary British permit that allowed the families to enter the northern Tanganyika, settling in Mara, Musoma, Bunda and Mwanza in 1951. His father begrudgingly settled there though he did not plan to live there for long. According to his parents, life had moved from bad to worse in their new unproductive foreign home. After Kenya attained its independence, they moved back to

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

around mid-1960s, settling in Cherangany, Trans Nzoia County. Kirwa started his elementary education and later secondary education in Kenya, and he excelled culminating in his admission to the

Egerton University Egerton University is a public university in Kenya. It is the oldest institution of higher education in Kenya. Location The main campus of the university is located in Njoro, a small community approximately , southwest of the town of Nakuru. T ...

where he acquired his tertiary education. He holds two master's degrees; Master of Science in Applied Management and Leadership from

The Management University of Africa ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The' ...

, and Master of Arts in International Studies from the

University of Nairobi The University of Nairobi (uonbi or UoN; ) is a college, collegiate research university based in Nairobi and is the largest List of universities and colleges in Kenya, university in Kenya. Although its history as an educational institution dat ...

. He is also pursuing further studies at the

which will lead to PhD in International Studies.

Political career

Parliament

He was elected to represent the

in the

national assembly of Kenya The National Assembly of the Republic of Kenya (formerly House of Representatives) is one of the two Houses of the Parliament of Kenya. Between 1966 and 2013, it served as a unicameral house. In 2013 ( 11th Parliament), it became the lower ...

at the age of 33 during the 1990 by-election. He was re-elected consecutively during the

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

and

2002 Kenyan general election General elections were held in Kenya on 27 December 2002. Voters elected the President of Kenya, president, members of the National Assembly (Kenya), National Assembly and 2002 Kenyan local elections, local officials. Mwai Kibaki of the National ...

s. He served as a member of parliament at the

National Assembly of Kenya The National Assembly of the Republic of Kenya (formerly House of Representatives) is one of the two Houses of the Parliament of Kenya. Between 1966 and 2013, it served as a unicameral house. In 2013 ( 11th Parliament), it became the lower ...

for approximately two decades.

Cabinet

When the NARC led by President

Mwai Kibaki Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki (15 November 1931 – 21 April 2022) was a Kenyan politician who served as the third President of Kenya from December 2002 until April 2013. He served in various leadership positions in Kenya's government including ...

swept into power during the 2002 Kenyan general election, Kirwa was appointed to serve as the

Minister for Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

. Later he was nominated to serve as

IGAD The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) is an eight-country trade bloc in Africa. It includes governments from the Horn of Africa, Nile Valley and the African Great Lakes. It is headquartered in Djibouti. Formation The Intergov ...

Special Envoy to Somalia Peace and National Reconciliation from 2008 to 2012.

Personal life

Kirwa is married with four children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirwa, Kipruto Arap Living people Members of the National Assembly (Kenya) Ministers of agriculture of Kenya 1957 births University of Nairobi alumni