Eddy Oketch
Founder of Peace for African and Economic Development (PAD)
- Eddy was born as the seventh child in a struggling family of eight siblings and grew up in my underdeveloped village of Mang’ong’o in Migori District of Kenya.
- After his mother’s death, Eddy was forced to drop out of school to provide for his younger siblings, working side jobs including working on tobacco farms, in backstreet canteens as a dish-washer and as a garbage collector, earning meager wages so that he could buy food for his family
- In response to the post-election violence that broke out in Kenya in 2008, Eddy founded Peace for African and Economic Development (PAD) mobilizing 11,000 youth ambassadors to foster peace.
- Eddie’s remarkable leadership story earned him a place in ALA’s inaugural class. While at ALA, Eddie continued to develop PAD, leveraging off the leadership skills and networks that were being nurtured at ALA
- In his gap year after graduating from ALA, he continued to work on PAD, launching a mobile phone campaign, holding unity concerts, convincing politicians to make public declarations, and ultimately bringing together 350,000 youth and engaging 5 million voters in Kenya in PAD’s message for peace.
- Eddy has participated in leading conferences around the globe including the World Economic Forum, the 2012 Clinton Global Initiative, and the G8 Summit, where he was a panel leader.
- He is currently pursuing a Master’s degree at Yale’s Institute for Global Affairs

Eddy with ALA founders Fred Swaniker and Chris Bradford
Related Links
Eddy Oketch featured in Standard Media News, Kenya (2012)
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000071119
Video of G8 Symposium Panel, Food Security/Nutrition, moderated by Eddy Oketch
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVExhqQr-8I
G8 Symposium Panel, Food Security/Nutrition – Trinity College press release (2012)
ALA Video interview with Eddie Oketch, 2014
