Kenya’s tech policy community mourns Rosemary Koech-Kimwatu

Kenya's technology and internet governance community is mourning the death of Rosemary Koech-Kimwatu, a prominent lawyer, data protection specialist and digital policy advocate who played a significant role in shaping conversations around internet governance in Kenya and across Africa.

Koech-Kimwatu died on Friday, 21 August 2026, according to reports citing her family and colleagues. The circumstances of her death have not been publicly disclosed.

Her death was announced by the Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet), where she served as a board trustee.

KICTANet described her as a cherished colleague, mentor and friend who brought expertise, energy and a strong commitment to technology policy, internet governance and digital rights.

Her death comes as a major loss to a community in which she had been active for years.

A career at the intersection of law and technology

Koech-Kimwatu built a career spanning law, technology policy, telecommunications, fintech and data protection.

At the time of her death, she was Head of Data Protection at KCB Group, a position she had held since 2022. She had previously worked in public policy at Safaricom and held other legal and regulatory roles.

Her professional work increasingly focused on data protection and governance as Kenya's digital economy expanded.

She was also involved in industry and professional organisations, including Kenya Network Information Centre (KeNIC), where she served as a board member. KeNIC's current board records list her as a board member and as a member of its Audit, Risk and Governance and Human Resources committees.

A voice in Kenya's internet governance movement

Perhaps her most enduring contribution was in internet governance.

Koech-Kimwatu was closely involved with the Kenya School of Internet Governance (KeSIG), a programme designed to develop the next generation of people capable of participating in internet policy discussions.

KICTANet records show that she was involved in the programme as a faculty member and later took on leadership responsibilities. In 2020, she served as faculty lead, helping introduce participants to internet governance, emerging policy issues and the role of different stakeholders in shaping the digital environment.

A KeSIG report from 2021 described her as heading the school's faculty.

Her involvement stretched back even further. KICTANet's records show her teaching legal issues, including privacy and intellectual property, during the 2017 edition of the programme.

The programme brought together participants from government, civil society, academia, the private sector, the technology community and the legal profession.

For Koech-Kimwatu, that work reflected a belief that internet governance could not be left to governments or technology companies alone.

It required participation from the wider public.

Taking Kenya’s digital policy debate to the world

Her influence also extended beyond Kenya.

In 2024, she represented civil society from the African group as a speaker at a session of the United Nations Internet Governance Forum, where she participated in discussions on strengthening civil society's influence over digital policy. The session focused on the gaps between civil society participation and policy-making.

Her contribution was part of a broader African push for more inclusive approaches to internet governance and digital rights.

That emphasis on inclusion was also evident in her professional work.

In a 2021 profile recognising her among influential women in legal technology, Koech-Kimwatu spoke about deliberately mentoring other women and creating opportunities for women in the technology and legal sectors. She argued for stronger engagement between technology experts, lawyers and lawmakers as governments developed new technology regulations.

A champion of the next generation

Those who worked with her remember not only her technical knowledge but also her commitment to developing other professionals.

KeSIG was one of the clearest examples.

The programme's stated goal is to build capacity among people interested in internet governance, including civil society organisations, students, academics, technology professionals and government officials.

Koech-Kimwatu helped teach and mentor participants who would go on to participate in Kenya's increasingly important digital policy debates.

Her role in the programme placed her at a crucial intersection: translating complex legal and technological questions into issues that could be understood and debated by a much wider group of stakeholders.

Her work continued until recently

Her involvement in digital policy was not confined to the past.

In 2026, she was still actively participating in national discussions on data governance.

KICTANet recently featured her discussing expectations for a Kenya data governance capacity-building and engagement workshop. In the discussion, she spoke in her capacity as KCB's Head of Data Protection and a KICTANet trustee.

She was also listed as a speaker at the 2026 Connected Africa Summit, where she was scheduled to participate in discussions on digital policy and data protection.

The events underline how active she remained in the sector shortly before her death.

A legacy beyond job titles

Koech-Kimwatu's career coincided with a period in which Kenya moved rapidly from basic internet policy debates to questions about data protection, artificial intelligence, digital public infrastructure, cybersecurity and the regulation of increasingly powerful technology companies.

She participated in many of those conversations.

But her legacy may be measured less by the titles she held than by the people she helped prepare to take part in them.

KICTANet said she believed in people, a just society and inclusive digital spaces.

Her work at KeSIG reflected that philosophy: build knowledge, bring different stakeholders to the same table and give the next generation the tools to influence the policies governing technology.

For a country whose digital economy continues to expand, those questions are becoming more consequential.

And the community that has spent years debating them will now have to continue without one of its most familiar voices.

Rosemary Koech-Kimwatu was a lawyer, policy specialist, mentor and advocate for a more inclusive digital future. Her contribution to Kenya's internet governance movement leaves a legacy that will extend well beyond the organisations and boards on which she served.

KICTANet said she lived with purpose and described her as a trailblazer whose influence reached both Kenya and the wider African continent.

Her colleagues now face the difficult task of carrying forward the work to which she devoted much of her professional life.