By Brian Kiprono - Reporter
Kenya, 30 November 2025 - Plans are underway to lay Beryl Lilian Achieng’ Mungwari Odinga, the younger sister of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, to rest at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga family cemetery in Kang’o Ka Jaramogi, Siaya County.
Achieng’, who died on 25 November 2025 at the age of 73 while receiving treatment in Nairobi, will be buried alongside other members of the Odinga family.
Images shared by relatives showed the family visiting the cemetery, where several prominent Odingas, including Raila’s late son Fidel, are interred.
Raila Odinga Junior, who was appointed to lead the funeral planning committee, chaired a series of meetings on Saturday before touring the cemetery with elders from the Jaramogi lineage to confirm the burial site.
“With the blessings of my uncle Oburu Oginga, we sat down with Jakawuor today to choose the final resting place for my late aunt,” Junior said, adding that the family would release further details on the burial programme in due course.
Siaya Senator Oburu Oginga, who delegated the coordination role to his nephew, accompanied the team during the consultations.
Achieng’ leaves behind a long, distinguished record in public service across Kenya and the region.
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After completing her Form Six studies in 1972, she worked in teaching and later trained in law, opening the door to senior roles in governance and urban planning.
She became the first Black Town Clerk of Mutare, Zimbabwe’s third-largest city, shortly after the country’s independence, a pioneering achievement that placed her at the centre of major policy decisions during a period of national transition.
She later served as Company Secretary at the Housing Corporation of Zimbabwe before returning to Kenya, where she was appointed to the board of the Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company in 2020.
Her personal journey was also marked by resilience. After marrying Otieno Ambala in 1974, she endured years of hardship, including an abusive marriage, as documented in Raila Odinga’s autobiography The Flame of Freedom. She eventually fled to Zimbabwe in the 1980s, where she rebuilt her life, career, and identity.
Beryl Achieng’ is remembered as a determined professional and a trailblazer whose work in urban development, particularly in Mutare and Chitungwiza, continues to shape city planning decades later.
