Ellen gets Kenya’s highest award

Kenya has given President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf its highest award titled “Chief of The Order of The Golden Heart of Kenya” or CGH at a colorful ceremony held at State House in Nairobi.

President Sirleaf has won several awards, including the Nobel Peace Prize and the Indira Gandhi Prize for peace, disarmament and development. The Executive Mansion says President Sirleaf received Kenya’s topmost award on Saturday, 12 December at an Investiture Ceremony that followed the east African country’s 52nd independence anniversary in recognition of her enormous undertakings in both private and public life spanning over national and international careers.
Mrs. Sirleaf is on a seven-day visit to Kenya to attend three major events – a State Visit, an International Forum on Women in Business and the World Trade Organization or WTO’s 10th Ministerial Conference, which marks Liberia’s landmark accession to the WTO.
A dispatch from Nairobi says President Sirleaf commended the people of Kenya for the sacrifices and commitment towards democratic governance.  She observed that having followed Kenya closely in its democratic evolution, it was laudable that all Kenyans be recognized for their individual and collective contributions to the process.
She said Kenya has now become a shining example of democratic best practice on the African continent, while reiterating her gratitude to the Kenyan Government and people for standing by Liberia in the fight against Ebola.
President Sirleaf recalled how Kenya medical personnel were joined by their counterparts from Rwanda, Ethiopia, Burundi and Democratic Republic of Congo, among others during the Ebola crisis here.  She also recognized the efforts of Kenyan Lieutenant-General Daniel Opandi who once served as the Force Commander of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) and his contribution to sustaining Liberia’s current peace.