Professor Yash Pal Ghai is one of Kenya’s leading constitutional scholars and reformers. He is renowned for his key role in the development of the 2010 Constitution of Kenya, a process that transformed the country’s governance framework.

In 2000, he was appointed Chair of the Constitution of Kenya Review Commission (CKRC), which had the mandate to draft a new constitution after years of public demand for reform. Under his leadership, the CKRC carried out extensive consultations across the country, gathering views from citizens on governance, devolution, human rights, and the role of state institutions. The result was the Bomas Draft Constitution of 2004, which laid the groundwork for the eventual 2010 Constitution. Despite political wrangles and a rejected referendum in 2005, key features of Ghai’s draft – including a strong Bill of Rights, devolution, and checks on executive power – survived and became defining pillars of the current Constitution.

Beyond Kenya, Prof. Ghai is recognised internationally as a leading authority on constitutional law. He studied law at the University of Oxford and Harvard Law School, advancing to a distinguished academic career. He taught at the University of Dar es Salaam, where he became its first African Dean. He later held faculty positions at Yale, Warwick, Uppsala, and the University of Hong Kong, where he was appointed Sir Y.K. Pao Professor of Public Law in 1989 and subsequently became an Honorary Professor. He also served as a visiting professor at several universities worldwide.

Prof. Ghai’s influence reaches well beyond Kenya. He has advised on or contributed to drafting over 20 constitutions, starting with Papua New Guinea in 1975, and has played vital roles in constitutional processes in countries such as Cambodia, Nepal, and Fiji. His scholarship has also shaped Kenyan legal studies. His book, “Public Law and Political Change in Kenya”, co-authored with Patrick McAuslan in 1970, remains an essential text for law students.

Along with Dr. Jill Cottrell Ghai, he established the Katiba Institute in Nairobi in 2011, where they continue to dedicate their efforts to promoting constitutionalism and civic engagement, often working pro bono.