Dr Abdillahi Saggaf Alawy.
The National Land Commission is poised for new leadership after President William Ruto nominated Dr Abdillahi Saggaf Alawy as its next chairperson to lead the constitutional body charged with managing public land on behalf of national and county governments.
The nomination thrusts a relatively low-profile technocrat into one of Kenya’s most critical constitutional offices, at a time when land remains an emotive and politically sensitive issue across the country.
From rural land adjudication in Lamu to overseeing agricultural programmes across 43 countries, Dr Alawy’s career has revolved around land, governance and development. That trajectory has now culminated in his nomination by President Ruto to chair the NLC.
But beyond his professional background, Dr Alawy's family background has equally raised interests in the nomination.
His nomination comes barely six months after the government issued the Saggaf family with a freehold title deed for 610.35 acres of Wasini Island in Kwale, after more than five decades of waiting.
On September 10, the government, through the Land Registrar, issued the family with a freehold title deed for the property, a document they had pursued for generations.
The Saggaf family are among the earliest settlers of the island, having migrated from Vumba Kuu, on the Kenya–Tanzania border, and settled there some 400 years ago.
The principal owners of the property were Hassan Nassir, Muhammad Nassir and Ahmed Nassir, who held a land title ordinance dated 1908. This was recognised in 1969 by the then Recorder of Titles, after Kenya had attained independence from British rule.
The property borders the Kisite–Mpunguti Marine National Park and Reserve, one of Kenya’s premier marine attractions, famous for dolphins, coral reefs and snorkelling and diving opportunities. Its proximity to the planned Shimoni port and government-backed conservation and tourism projects further heightens its potential, attracting both domestic and international interest.
The NLC later acknowledged the Saggaf family as victims of historical injustice. The land in question, originally registered as plot number W33/Kwale/Wasini, belonged to Saggaf Alawy and was inherited by his sons, Hassan, Mohamed and Ahmed.
However, rival claimants later emerged, sparking a protracted dispute that ended in the High Court in Mombasa. In 1995, the court ruled in favour of the Saggaf family.
Following the judgment, the NLC ordered that the land be returned to them and directed the Chief Land Registrar to revoke any conflicting titles. A gazette notice of March 1, 2019, reaffirmed this, echoing an earlier cancellation notice of April 11, 1997.
With the freehold title secured, the family moved to assert ownership of the land, issuing notices to investors and occupants who had built hotels and other structures on it. While commercial investors were told to either purchase the land at the prevailing market value or vacate, the family appealed to the government to intervene by purchasing portions of the land to resettle squatters.
“We do not intend to evict squatters who have built temporary structures, but we are asking the government to buy the land and settle them. If not, we shall have no option but to evict them,” Mr Muhammad Nassir, one of the Saggaf family members, said in a previous interview.
He added that about 90 per cent of the land remains virgin territory while only 10 per cent has been encroached upon.
Efforts to reach Dr Alawy for an interview were futile as phone calls to his known number did not go through. Sources close to him said he was held up in meetings for the better part of Wednesday.
Documents in our possession show that Dr Alawy holds an extensive academic background from The Ohio State University. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics, specialising in marketing and statistics.
He later completed a Master of Science in Agricultural Education, with a focus on international development and research methods, sharpening his expertise in development programming and evidence-based policy design.
Crowning his academic journey, Dr Alawy obtained a PhD in Agricultural Education, specialising in monitoring and evaluation as well as gender studies. Dr Alawy boasts of over 20 years of leadership experience spanning land governance, agriculture, public administration, and institutional reform.
He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of the Agricultural Development Corporation (ADC/Lands Ltd.), where he provides governance oversight for land-based investments. In that role, he has steered strategic reforms aimed at embedding transparency in land management and championed sustainable land-use practices to strengthen food security.
Previously, he served as Global Director for Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning at the Centre for Agriculture & Bioscience International (CABI) in the United Kingdom, overseeing land and agricultural programmes across 43 countries.
His earlier career included hands-on service as a District Agricultural Extension Officer in Lamu, where he gained direct experience in land adjudication and settlement matters as well as extensive expertise in natural resource management, a foundation that aligns directly with the constitutional mandate of the NLC.
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