Fare thee well Ambassador Bob Francis Jalan'go Nyanduga

Another mighty oak tree has fallen. The steadily diminishing cadre of Kenya’s post-independence Career Ambassadors continues to whisper their swan songs. Last week, Boaz Kidiga Mbaya; this week, Bob Francis Jalan’go, a couple of weeks ago, Prof. Idha Salim.

On 5^th February 1945, just as Churchill, Stalin and Roosevelt, at Yalta, in Crimea, sought to agree a post-Second World War order, Bob Francis Jalan’go Nyanduga was born on the shores of Lake Victoria. He would eventually benefit and propitiously thrive, as a masterful player and expert tactician in those institutions so established by the “Big Three” to help structure a peaceful post-Second World milieu.

He was appointed by President Daniel arap Moi as Kenya’s Ambassador to Italy, with concurrent non-residential accreditation to Poland and Greece as well as Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Rome, Italy in I997. Jalango’s dexterity in navigating the complexities of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), where he championed African interests in food security and development, earned him great respect as a thought leader and renowned strategist. He delivered impressive benefits for Kenya and Africa, propelling him to be elected as Vice-Chairman of the African Group of Ambassadors in 1999, Chairman of the African Group’s Candidatures Committee and finally as the African Group’s Chairman in 2000.

In recognition of his prodigious diplomatic skills, he was appointed Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York in late 2000, presenting his credentials to the first African Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, on 8^th February 2001, three days after his 56^th birthday. There, too, he excelled, as the post-Cold War era defined its new irregular contours, especially for the Non-Aligned Movement, of which Kenya was a prominent member.

His diplomatic acumen, meshed with his well-honed intellect and effortless ease in managing relations with many nations, in a challenging multilateral setting, was carefully erected and nurtured on the solid foundations of another skilful tenure in 1993, as Kenya’s High Commissioner to the Republic of Zambia, in Lusaka. This stint in Zambia was expanded with concurrent, non -non-residential accreditation to the Republics of Malawi and Botswana. Serving also as Kenya’s Representative to the Common Market for Eastern and Central Africa (COMESA), headquartered in Lusaka and together with his visionary African colleagues, they propelled that institution into a pre-eminent trading bloc, having re-engineered the old Preferential Trade Area (PTA) entity into a thriving COMESA common market.

His solid academic accomplishments, in mathematics and physics from Makerere University in Uganda in 1970, as well as numerous certifications in computer programming and IT from Italy and the United States, propelled him into leadership positions in the United Nations and the United States of America, as one of Kenya’s earliest IT Professionals, especially as the world navigated the Y2K Internet crisis (“The Millennium Bug”).

As the year 2000 approached, some feared that the so-called Y2K bug would cause computers to fail, leading to worldwide pandemonium. This was because of potential computer errors related to the formatting and storage of calendar data for dates in and after the year 2000. Many programs represented four-digit years with only the final two digits, making the year 2000 indistinguishable from 1900. Computer systems' inability to distinguish dates correctly had the potential to bring down worldwide infrastructures for computer-reliant industries.

His abilities and easy charm enabled the United Nations to cobble together meaningful innovations within its structures, agencies and related entities, some ending up being the Millennium Development Goals and precursor to the Sustainable Development Goals, also driven to impressive success by one of our own, Ambassador Macharia Kamau.

Given his technical background and leadership at the UN during the Y2K transition he: Coordinated IT readiness across African delegations and UN bodies; A dvocated for system audits and compliance in agencies like FAO and WFP that relied heavily on legacy systems at the time; Supported global efforts to ensure food distribution and aid logistics were not disrupted by Y2K related failures; Pushed for training programs in cybersecurity, data management, and software development for African civil servants and UN staff; Used his ambassadorial role, even as a bully pulpit, to broker partnerships between African nations and global tech firms, unlocking funding and expertise for digital infrastructure.

Jalang’o’s rare blend of technical acumen and diplomatic finesse made him a bridge between grassroots needs and global innovation. He saw technology not just as a tool but as a catalyst for equity, resilience and sovereignty. His unique blend of technical acumen and diplomatic authority positioned him as a key figure in ensuring that Kenya’s and Africa’s interests were safeguarded during the global Y2K remediation efforts

The steps the UN took because of his efforts and others after him include: developing FAO’s Strategic Framework 2022–2031, emphasizing digital transformation and data-driven decision-making; hosting of the UN Food Systems Coordination Hub, which leverages IT platforms to support national food system pathways; investing in knowledge-sharing portals, M&E frameworks, and digital policy tools to guide countries in food systems transformation.

In WFP, it enhanced logistics and supply chain systems using real-time tracking and predictive analytics; built collaboration with IFAD on climate-resilient infrastructure and digital mapping of vulnerable regions; and used IT to support school feeding programs, procurement systems, and emergency response coordination.

In IFAD, it enabled Digital Inclusion for Farmers, advocating and enabling mobile based platforms that allowed smallholder farmers to access market prices, weather forecasts and agricultural best practices, facilitated Data Driven Development; increased the push for geospatial mapping and remote sensing to monitor crop yields and land use, improving decision-making and resource allocation, promoting and enabling E-Governance in agriculture, encouragement of African governments to adopt e-extension services and reducing reliance on physical outreach and enabling scalable farmer education.

Yes indeed, a solid legacy lives on.

For those of us whose careers began and ended at the Foreign Office, Ambassador Bob Jalan’go was a distinguished special breed, a breath of fresh air. His prolific, diverse background in the private sector from 1977 to 1988, working with Business Machines Limited, Kenya, Caltex Services Mid-Africa, Caltex Oil, Computer Systems Programming, Director Regional Information Technology Department, integrated and enriched his foray into diplomacy, enabling innovative programming and solutions to heretofore intractable management and technical diplomatic problems.

Having served as the pioneer Member of Parliament for Rarieda from 1988 to 1992, his political skills meshed with his business expertise to enhance his splendid diplomatic innings. He delivered a sterling tenure, guiding his people skillfully through the asymmetric complexities of Kenya’s infamous one-party era. Distinguishing himself with people-centred leadership, even before the 2010 Constitution was introduced and required the principle of public participation.

This was a unique breed of diplomats, well-educated, forged on the rigorous, frequently unforgiving anvil of Kenyan politics or Academia and polished by top-level stints in the private sector. They became very effective diplomats whose style and content we sometimes tried to emulate. In many ways, their service to our great nation has buttressed and enabled the Foreign Service to mitigate, even rebuff institutional inbreeding, a dangerous condition for any healthy, thriving system seeking to make an impact in our constantly mutating world. A few of those icons come to mind-Amb. Yusuf Abdulrahman Nzibo, Amb. Lazarus Amayo, Amb. George Masaf,u among many others.

Upon retirement from the Foreign Service, Ambassador Bob Jalan’go spent a considerable time giving back to the community, teaching in United States Universities, sharing his rich experiences and knowledge with the younger generation of upcoming diplomats and business leaders, until he returned to Kenya about five years ago.

Ambassador Bob Jalango’s eight-decade sojourn on this earth, with over two decades dedicated to the service of his homeland, Kenya, reminds us all that while our time on earth is short, service to God and Country is pre-eminent. A trailblazer and humble, approachable leader, deeply respected in Rarieda and beyond. A life marked by service and dedication to the public good. His passing leaves a void and his legacy lives on-especially in the institutions he helped shape, the lives he touched and the example he set for generations to come.

For his loved ones left behind, siblings, relatives, friends, we reach out as the Band of Diplomatic Brothers and Sisters, embrace and condole with you as we commit his earthly remains into the Hands of our Maker.

May the soul of Ambassador Bob Francis Jalan’go Nyanduga rest in eternal peace

Ambassador Owade is Acting Chair of the Retired and Former Ambassadors and Diplomats Association of the Republic of Kenya and Pioneer Secretary for Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations. Ambassador Amolo is a former Director of Political Affairs, PDS Emeritus and former High Commissioner of Kenya to South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. He is currently Principal Strategist at Diplomacy Without Borders.