Africa bids farewell to Wangari Maathai

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Published on Wednesday, 12 October 2011 11:03

Written by Kylie Marais

Image: afro-bits.org“In the world there is a new collective force of people mobilising around the issue of peace but linking it to the need to protect the environment...

But we must assert our collective vision and responsibility to shape that peace not only for our country but also for the whole of Africa.”                
    Mini-Beijing Women’s Conference, Nairobi, 1995

Many women in traditional, rural areas of Africa continue to be subjugated by society. This, however, was not the case with Wangari Maathai. Instead, Maathai was a determined African woman who achieved many firsts throughout her life and who was not afraid to stand up to societal norms.
Apart from being the first African woman in Central and East Africa to earn a doctoral degree, as well as the first African woman to head a department in a Kenyan University, Maathai was also the first African woman to ever receive the Nobel
Peace Prize.  
Born in a rural village in Kenya, Maathai made full use of her educational opportunities to the point where, in 1956, she ranked first in her class and, as a result, was granted admission to the only female Catholic high school in Kenya. Four years later, Maathai became one of approximately 300 Kenyan students to receive a scholarship to attend a university in the USA.
 Maathai obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in 1964 and completed her Master’s degree in biology at the University of Pittsburgh, where her interest in environmental issues ultimately began. In 1971, she received her Doctorate from the University College of Nairobi.
Maathai’s exposure to environmental restoration during her years at the University of Pittsburgh led her to begin the Green Belt Movement in 1977.  The mission of the movement was to “mobilise community consciousness using tree planting as an entry point for self-determination, equity, improved livelihoods and security, and environmental conservation.”  
Maathai’s vast contributions towards environmental affairs paid off greatly, as merely a month after she had been elected into Parliament in December 2002, Maathai was named Deputy Minister of the Environment, Natural Resources and Wildlife by current President Mwai Kibaki. In 2004, she was also awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for “her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace,” as well as her work with the Kenyan women through her Green
Belt Movement.
Nevertheless, soon after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, controversy arose when it was reported that Maathai had claimed that HIV/Aids was “deliberately created by Western scientists to decimate the African population.”  In addition to her unorthodox beliefs, Maathai had also fervently campaigned against the Kenyan African National Union regime who had intended to erect a skyscraper in the Uhuru reserve park, Nairobi.  Her determination to preserve the environment ultimately resulted in her winning the battle.  Due to her bravery in standing up against society, Maathai earned her title as a respected leader in society.
Wangari Maathai, who died of cancer on 25 September, will be greatly missed. She was 71. Maathai’s victories became those of the continent. She was, and will remain, an inspiration for African women and the African continent
as a whole.
While the unique attributes and qualities of Maathai cannot be replaced, efforts have been put into place to continue her work within the Green Belt Movement, in addition to the development of similar organisations. Maathai therefore leaves behind a hope for an improved Africa and will be remembered for her dedicated service to the continent.