Florida Karani - Chancellor of Maseno University

On 17 December 2008, President Kibaki appointed Prof Florida Amakobe Karani the Chancellor of Maseno University during the institution’s eighth graduation ceremony. With this appointment, Prof Karani makes history as Kenya's first ever female Chancellor of a public university.

Prior to her new appointment, Prof Karani was the Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of Academic Affairs at the University of Nairobi, a position she held from May 1994 to June 2004.

Prof Florida Karani has a long-standing academic career in the University of Nairobi. She started out as a lecturer in 1969 and over the years rose through the ranks to attain the position of associate professor of educational communications and technology in 1988. She later went on to become a full professor of education in 1996.

Prof Karani has also held senior administrative positions at the University of Nairobi's College of Education and External Studies. She was the College Principal from 1988 to 1994 before being appointed DVC Academic Affairs. Additionally, in 1988 she became the founding Dean of the Faculty of External Studies.

Florida Karani is an accomplished author and presenter with several peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations to her name. On the international arena, she has been involved in training of trainers for the UN Economic Commission for Africa and UNICEF. In 2002 she was appointed a member of the Africa Regional Scientific Committee of the UNESCO Forum on Higher Education, Research and Knowledge.

Closer home, Prof Karani has held membership positions in the Inter University Council of East Africa and Kenya's Commission for Higher Education. In 1994 she received the Order of the Grand Warrior of Kenya (OGW) presidential award in recognition of her contribution towards improving the quality of higher education in Kenya.

Top French Honours for Prof Miriam Were

Congratulations are in order for Prof Miriam Were on being awarded the title of "Knight in the National Order of the Legion of Honour" by the French President.

"Head of the National AIDS Control Council Miriam Were has once again been honoured for her contribution in fighting HIV and AIDS. A letter obtained by The Nation says France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy had signed a decree conferring upon Prof Were the title of Knight in the National Order of the Legion of Honour. The letter was signed by Mr Alain Joyandet, a top French government official. This award is considered the highest decoration in France. "

Source: Daily Nation, Thursday 18 December 2008

Monica Mweseli - Literature Professor and University Vice Chancellor

As the current Vice Chancellor of Kiriri Women’s University of Science and Technology (KWUST), Prof Monica Wanambisi Mweseli joins the company of Leah Marangu, Olive Mugenda and Mabel Imbuga – Kenyan women professors who are serving at the helm of universities (respectively, Africa Nazarene University, Kenyatta University and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology). 

KWUST is unique, however, in that it is Kenya’s only university that caters specifically for women and focuses on developing the capacity of female students in the fields of science and technology.

A literature don and former Fulbright scholar, Prof Monica Mweseli has over 20 years’ teaching and research experience in literature and linguistics both in Kenya and USA. Her career in academia began at the University of Nairobi where she earned her BA degree in English in 1979, majoring in literature in English with minors in History and Religious Studies. She then proceeded to Atlanta University in Georgia, USA where she obtained her MA (1981) and PhD (1987) in English.

Between 1984 and 1988, Prof Mweseli taught Composition and Literature at Daytona Beach Community College in Florida, USA. She then returned to Kenya and joined the University of Nairobi’s College of Education in July 1988 as a lecturer in the Department of Literature. Five years later, she rose to the position of senior lecturer and in September 2000 she was appointed associate professor of literature, a position she holds to date.

While teaching at the University of Nairobi, Prof Monica Mweseli also held various senior administrative roles. In 1990-91 as chair of the postgraduate students’ committee in the Department of Literature, she was responsible for reviewing both Masters and PhD thesis proposals in the department. 

Later, as acting chair of the Department of Literature and Linguistics (1994/95), she headed committees that were responsible for introducing new academic departments, such as the Department of Music, the Centre for Performing Arts and the Department of Arts and Design. She also chaired the planning and budgeting committee for the proposed 10-year literature and linguistics syllabus.

Prof Mweseli has supervised several Masters and PhD theses at the University of Nairobi and a number of her former students are now lecturing at various universities in Kenya. She is a prolific author with a host of publications to her name, ranging from literary analysis articles, poems, anthologies, short stories and books. She has also presented several papers on drama, prose, poetry, oral literature and African literature at various local and international forums.

Outside the university arena, Prof Monica Mweseli is an active member of the Kenya Oral Literature Association (KOLA) and the Kenya Chapter of AAWORD, the Association of African Women for Research and Development. She is also a reputable drama festival adjudicator and has adjudicated at various district and national drama festivals in Kenya over the years between 1992 and 2005. She is also a devoted member of the Church of God, Nairobi and co-director of a non-governmental organization Aged, Children and Women Organization.

Ruth Oniang’o – Parliamentarian & Nutrition Professor

If there’s one Kenyan woman professor who has made an indelible mark on the development of nutrition training, research and development in Kenya and much of Africa, it is Honorable Prof Ruth Khasaya Oniang’o.

Prof Oniang’o also holds the distinction of being Kenya’s first professor of nutrition and she is probably the first woman nutrition professor in the whole of sub-Saharan Africa.

Academic career
Her career journey in the field of food science and nutrition began at Washington State University, Pullman USA where she received her BSc in Food & Nutrition (1972) and MSc in Human Nutrition (1974).

From 1977 to 1978, she worked as a Tutorial Fellow at the University of Nairobi, where she was also registered for her PhD in Food Science & Nutrition. She received her doctoral degree in 1983.

Between 1978 and 1988, Prof Oniang’o taught at Kenyatta University (KU) and rose steadily through the academic ranks of assistant lecturer, lecturer and senior lecturer. From 1988 to 1990, she served as associate professor of nutrition at KU.

She then moved to Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) and became the university’s first woman professor. Prof Oniang’o later attained the position of full professor of food science and nutrition in 1996 and also served as JKUAT’s founder Director of Graduate Studies.

Prof Oniang’o has served as external examiner for a number of universities in Africa and, in the process, assisted them to develop or revise their food science and nutrition curricula. These include: Kenya’s Moi, Egerton, Maseno and Kenyatta Universities; Tanzania's Sokoine University of Agriculture; University of Namibia; University of Zimbabwe and Malawi’s Bunda University College.

Locally, she has also served as a board member of the Egerton University Council, the Private Sector Governance Trust, the national policy think-tank Kenya Institute of Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA) and the Kenya Bureau of Standards.

Internationally, Prof Oniang'o has attended and given plenary addresses to international congresses of the International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS), International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST) and Crop Science meetings.

She has also authored numerous publications, many of which have been presented in local, regional and international forums.

Parliamentarian
In 2003, Prof Oniang’o took leave of absence from JKUAT following her nomination to Kenya’s ninth parliament by the Kenya African National Union (KANU) party. She served as a nominated MP from January 2003 to December 2007.

In her new-found capacity as an MP, she was able to address a wide spectrum of policy and governance issues that affect the common mwananchi.

For example, she brought a Bill before the House to address drought and famine, and supported the use of modern technologies, including biotechnology, by African scientists and policymakers.

She also supported a Bill to professionalize Kenyan nutritionists and dieticians. In addition, she used her experience as a trainer, researcher and development philanthropist to champion the cause of the youth, peasant farmers and women at the grassroots level.

Journal Editor

In addition to her university and parliamentary stints, Prof. Ruth Oniang’o wears an additional cap of Editor-in-Chief of the African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development (AJFAND).

She started the journal in 2001 to provide young African university scholars with an avenue through which they could publish scholarly works related to food, agriculture, nutrition and development. AJFAND also serves as a capacity-building effort for budding academics from across the globe. Some of these young scholars also serve as interns in her NGO - Rural Outreach Program.

In this way, Prof Oniang'o is actively involved in mentoring and developing the next generation of African scholars by offering them an opportunity to participate in action research, present papers at scientific meetings, learn the art of writing research proposals, develop their skills in critical thinking, and gain experience in editing of scientific manuscripts.

Rural Outreach Program

Prof Oniang’o founded the Rural Outreach Program (ROP) in 1993 and is its first Executive Director. ROP is a non-profit community development organization whose establishment was triggered following the findings of an action research project by JKUAT. ROP’s main goal was to harness the intellectual resource of the university and connect it with the various capacities within communities to try and improve the livelihoods of the rural poor.

Through ROP, Ruth Oniang’o has literally transformed the lives of many rural poor families in the Butere-Mumias district of western Kenya and its environs. One of the things Prof Oniang'o is passionate about is the need for Kenyans of all walks of life to be able to obtain access to affordable health care.

Her innovative and top-notch leveraged interventions that have cut across the board have addressed a variety of issues including: nutrition and food security, wealth creation, women economic empowerment, environment, health and sanitation -- including HIV/AIDS, housing, education and poverty.

The Kenya Government awarded issued ROP with a certificate of recognition in acknowledgement of the organization's community-based development efforts. Farther afield, ROP has also been awarded special recognition by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), through Kenya’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Local and International Awards

For her outstanding service to her country in community development through action research and rural development activities, Prof Oniang’o has been awarded two national honours: the Silver Star in 1995 and the Distinguished Service Medal in 1998.

Internationally, Ruth Oniang'o won the Woman of the Year 2000 award granted by the American Biographical Institute.

Additionally, in 2006 she was granted the award of Fellow of three prestigious professional bodies: the International Union of Nutritional Sciences, the International Union of Food Science and Technology and the World Academy of Science and Art.

In 2007 she was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Kenya Coalition for Action in Nutrition (KCAN) for recognition of her contributions to the advancement of nutrition and development initiatives in Kenya. In the same year, she was also successfully nominated Corresponding Member of the Medical and Natural Sciences Section of the Royal Academy of Overseas Sciences in Belgium.

Consultant

In Kenya, Prof Oniang'o has served on a number of national committees and commissions such as the Poverty Eradication Commission, the National Food Policy Committee, the World Food Summit and International Conference on Nutrition Committee, the National Standards Board, the Early Childhood Development Committee, and the Task force on Laws affecting Women and Children.

She has also worked as a professional consultant for organizations such as FAO, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and a number of international and local NGOs and universities.

She currently sits on the Boards of the International Rice Research Institute, International Fertilizer Development Centre, and the HarvestPlus Program Advisory Committee.

She is always at the forefront of debate when it comes to matters of health care, agricultural research, nutrition and food security. She has participated in consultations at the international level and helped to generate decisions that have shaped global food security and nutrition.

Her grasp of African food and nutrition issues has often enabled her to be Africa’s voice at many international forums such as the World Nutrition Conference in 1992 and the World Food Summit in 1996.

In her political position, Ruth Oniang’o is a trainer with the International Republican Institute and a consultant with the Club of Madrid, a Club of about 74 democratically elected past heads of State and Government.

Prof Oniang'o is keen to see a Green Revolution for Africa that can enable the continent move from a position of 'beggar of food' to 'exporter of food'. She is a strong believer in restoring Africa’s dignity by ensuring that this transformation takes place. To this end, she soldiers on tirelessly in her academic work and through her NGO, often using minimal financial resources but always driven by her vision of a better Africa.

Prof Ruth Oniang'o is married with five children and three grandchildren. She presently works as a consultant, based in Kenya. She vied unsuccessfully for an elective parliamentary post in last year's General Elections and though her NGO suffered from the effects of the post-election violence, she was thankfully not physically harmed.

Prof Oniang'o remains committed to sharing her experiences with those who wish to learn from them. She can be contacted on oniango@iconnect.co.ke

Judith Mbula Bahemuka - Sociologist and Ambassador

Prof Judith Mbula Bahemuka is a trained sociologist whose specialization is rural development, focusing on poverty reduction through the utilization of farming systems to provide sustainable livelihoods for rural families.

She has done sizeable work in the area of women and development, looking at the role of women in agricultural development. Her work with agriculture extension staff, producing training manuals in post-harvest systems for small-scale framers and linking farmers’ knowledge to that of the extension personnel has been widely acknowledged.

Prof Mbula Bahemuka worked with the Kenya National Aids Secretariat, as a member of the Education and Information Committee since its inception. She supported the WHO 1992/93 evaluation of HIV/AIDS in Kenya. In 1995/1997 she participated in the preparing the Sessional Paper on HIV/AIDS, chairing the committee on women, children and HIV/AIDS.

Internationally, she has worked closely with the Global Partners Project which brings together the Great Lakes Colleges Association of USA, Associated Colleges from the South, and the Association of Colleges of the Midwest.

She established the International Learning Centre at the University of Nairobi in 1998 where she was the founder Director. In 1997 she was honoured with the UNESCO Chair on Women Education, Health and Sustainable Development. She was the holder of the Chair until 2003, when she was appointed the Kenya Permanent Representative and Ambassador to United Nations in New York.

In 2000, Bahemuka, with funding from Andrew Mellon Foundation, and the support of Global Partners, established the International Learning Centre in Nairobi. The centre caters for scholars from the Region by facilitating Collaborative Research on Education, Social Change and Development. The centre has so far produced high quality scholarly work under the title “East Africa in Transition.”

Prof Mbula Bahemuka holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Marygrove College, Detroit, USA; a Master of Arts and Doctorate in Sociology from University of Nairobi; Post Doctorate Certificate in International Agriculture and Rural Development from Cornell University and a Certificate in International Relations from Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota. She holds honorary Doctorates of Humane Letters from Kalamazoo College in Michigan and Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut.

Judith Mbula Bahemuka is currently the Kenya High Commissioner to Canada and Ambassador to Cuba.

Source: http://www.mcgill.ca/globalfoodsecurity/speakers/bios/#JBAHEMUKA

Judi Wakhungu - Kenya's Top Female Petroleum Geologist

Prof Judi Wakhungu is the Executive Director of the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) in Nairobi, Kenya. She was most recently an Associate Professor of Science, Technology and Society at Pennsylvania State University where she also served as the Director of the Women in the Science and Engineering (WISE) Institute.

Prof Wakhungu's research interests include energy resources management; energy policy and development; science, technology and development; and gender issues in science and technology policy.

She received a Bachelor of Science degree in geology from St. Lawrence University in New York, a Master of Science degree in petroleum geology from Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada and a PhD in energy resources management from Pennsylvania State University.

Prof Judi Wakhungu has held a number of energy sector positions in the civil service, industry and higher education in Kenya where she has a long list of "firsts".

She was the first woman geologist in the Ministry of Energy and Regional Development, where her duties entailed exploring for geothermal energy in Kenya's Rift Valley.

Prof Wakhungu was also the first female petroleum geologist in the National Oil Corporation of Kenya. Additionally, she was the first female faculty member in the University of Nairobi's Department of Geology.

Prof Wakhungu has served on many boards and committees, both nationally and internationally.

She was the Research Director of the Global Energy Policy and Planning Program of the International Federation of Institutes for Advanced Study (IFIAS), which is based in Toronto, Canada.

She has served as the Project Leader of the Renewable Energy Technology Dissemination Project of the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI).

She is currently the Chair of the Advisory Board of the STEPS Centre (Social, Technological and Environmental Pathways to Sustainability).

Prof Wakhungu also has the distinction of being the Designated Energy Expert for the United Nations Commission of Science and Technology for Development (Gender Working Group). She has also served as the Executive Director of the African Technology Policy Studies (ATPS) Network.

Source: http://www.acts.or.ke/about/council/profwakhungu.pdf

Mabel Imbuga - New VC of JKUAT

Prof Mabel Imbuga is the new Vice Chancellor of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) effective 1 August 2008. She takes over from Prof Nick Wanjohi whose term ended in March this year. For the past four months, Prof Imbuga has been the interim VC.

With her new appointment, Prof Mabel Imbuga becomes the second female VC of a public university in Kenya, after Prof Olive Mugenda of Kenyatta University.

A professor of biochemistry, Mabel Imbuga has a longstanding record of administrative leadership in JKUAT. She headed the Department of Biochemistry between 1998 and 1999, after which she rose to become the Dean of the Faculty of Science and served for two terms between 1999 and 2003.

She was then appointed the director in charge of academic programs at JKUAT’s Institute of Tropical Medicine. In May 2005, Prof Imbuga was appointed the Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of academic affairs, a position she held until she became the acting VC.

Congratulations, Prof Imbuga!

Lucy Irungu - Principal of UoN's Chiromo Campus

Prof Lucy W Irungu is currently the Principal of the University of Nairobi's College of Biological and Physical Sciences - commonly known as Chiromo Campus. She is also a full Professor of Entomology in the School of Biological Sciences.

Prof Irungu's academic career in the sciences began following her graduation from the University of Nairobi in 1978 with a first class honours Bachelor of Science degree in Entomology (the study of insects).

She immediately joined the Nairobi-based International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) as a graduate research scholar and was awarded a scholarship by the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation to pursue a Master of Science degree in Medical Entomology and Applied Parasitology at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine which she completed in 1979.

Thereafter, she proceeded to Imperial College and the British Museum on internship for six months before returning to ICIPE. In 1981, she was awarded a scholarship by the Association of Commonwealth Universities to pursue a doctorate degree. She completed her PhD at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in 1984 and returned to ICIPE for her postdoctoral work.

In 1988, she joined the University of Nairobi's Department of Zoology as a lecturer and rose through the ranks to full Professor. Prof Irungu also served as the Chair of the Department of Zoology from 1999 to 2004. She was then appointed as the Principal of the College of Biological and Physical Sciences, a position she has held to date.

Prof Lucy Irungu has conducted research in the area of vector biology and control with special reference to malaria vectors and other vectors and parasites of Neglected Diseases. In addition, she has supervised over 20 MSc students and four PhD students. She has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and is a fellow of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene and a member of several other professional organizations.

Agnes Mwang'ombe - Principal of UoN's Agriculture College

Of the University of Nairobi's six colleges, only two are presently headed by Kenyan women professors. One of these women is Prof Agnes Mwang'ombe, the Principal of the College of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences at Upper Kabete Campus.

The other is Prof Lucy Irungu, the principal of Chiromo Campus, who is featured in my next post.

Prof Mwang'ombe was appointed the principal of Upper Kabete Campus in September 2005, prior to which she was the university's Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture for two years.

Prof Mwang'ombe's area of specialization is plant pathology and she obtained her PhD in plant pathology from the University of London in 1987. A year later, she joined the teaching staff at the University of Nairobi as a lecturer in the Department of Crop Science. She rose through the academic ranks to become a senior lecturer in 1991 and associate professor in 1997.

In 1997, she was appointed a member of the board of the African Crop Science Society and served as the president of the society between 2003 and 2005.

Aside from the area of crop science, Prof Mwang'ombe has been actively engaged in the formulation and implementation of agricultural policy in Kenya. In recognition of her work in this regard, she was appointed the chair of the board of the Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis in 2007, a position she currently holds.

She is also involved in charity education programs for girls and mentorship programs for young women scientists in East Africa. In 1996, she was elected the first chair of KEPAWAE - the Kenya Professional Association of Women in Agriculture and Environment. Through this organization, professional women in the fields of agriculture and environmental sciences offer technical expertise and material support to Kenyan rural women farmers through transfer of appropriate farming technologies and development of project proposals.

In 2000, Prof Mwang'ombe founded an NGO - Arid and Semi-arid Lands Foundation - to identify and promote projects aimed at sustainable food production and natural resource management in Kenya's arid and semi-arid lands that comprise over 70 per cent of the country's area. She presently serves as the NGO's director.

Rosalind Mutua - First VC of Kenya's Only Women's University

In 2002, Prof Rosalind Mutua became the first Vice Chancellor of Kiriri Women's University of Science and Technology (KWUST). This is a private university and the first in East Africa that caters specifically for women.

Female students comprise a mere 20% of Kenya's university student population and less than one-fifth of female students are enrolled in science-based courses. KWUST hopes to change this scenario by bridging the gender gap in science and technology courses, with an initial focus on mathematics, computer science and ICT (information, communication and technology).

Before joining KWUST as one of its founding professors, Rosalind Mutua was the Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of Research, Production and Extension at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology.

Prof Mutua currently serves as the Vice Chair of Kenya's Commission for Higher Education, the body that is charged with accrediting universities and other institutions of higher learning in the country.

Though the KWUST website still has her listed as the Vice Chancellor, my recent email enquiry to the university revealed that she has since retired as VC and the position is now held by Prof Monica Mweseli.

I haven't yet been able to get more specific details from KWUST or Prof Mutua on her educational background and rise through the academic ranks, but I shall edit this post with the updates once I do.

Olive Mugenda - First Woman Vice Chancellor of a Public University in Kenya

In March 2006, Prof Olive Mugenda of Kenyatta University (KU) made history in Kenya by becoming the first woman to be appointed the Vice Chancellor (VC) of a public university. What is also notable about Prof Mugenda’s feat is that she was selected through a competitive open recruitment process and beat three male professors to clinch the post, demonstrating that in some cases a woman may just be the ‘best man for the job’!

Olive Mugenda has built an impressive track record of quality leadership through her professional contribution towards improving the quality of education in Kenya. Prior to her appointment as VC, she was KU’s Deputy VC in charge of Finance and Planning for four years.

After she received her PhD in Family and Consumer Studies from Iowa State University in 1988, Prof Mugenda taught in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, rising to become the head of department and later the Dean of the Institute of Applied Human Sciences. She also served as the Director of KU’s International Students’ Summer Program.

In the course of her teaching career, Olive Mugenda specialized in women’s education, home economics, statistics and research methodology. She also contributed towards the restructuring and diversification of the home economics curriculum at KU, placing greater emphasis on emerging topics such as environmental sciences, public health and HIV/AIDS management.

She has led several programs in support of girls’ education in Kenya at primary, secondary and university levels, and has received several awards in honour of her efforts in this regard. These include the 2007 Eastern and Southern Africa Management Institute MBA Meritorious Award, the 2006 Elder of the Burning Spear presidential award, the 2002 KU Exemplary Service Award, the 2000 Atlas Alumni Award and Iowa State University’s 1982 Phi Kappa Phi Achievement Award.

KU recently made two noteworthy achievements under Prof Olive Mugenda’s watch as VC. In May 2008, the university was recognized as the best performing state corporation in the 2006-07 performance contract evaluations. In the same month, KU received ISO 9001:2000 quality certification for its excellence in accountability and operations. Of the seven public universities in Kenya, KU is the only one so far to receive an ISO certification.

KU’s star is shining brightly under Prof Olive Mugenda’s leadership and I believe that she can and will do even more to lead further improvements in quality of education and service delivery at the institution.

Olive Mugenda’s accomplishments are a source of inspiration to Kenyan women to strive for excellence in their careers, aim high and not shy away from competing for top-level jobs, especially in the public sector.

Kudos Prof Mugenda!

Leah Marangu - Kenya's First Woman Vice Chancellor

While Wangari Maathai is renowned as Kenya’s first female professor, having attained associate professorship in 1977, Leah Marangu bears the distinction of being the first woman in East Africa to be named a full professor.

Leah Marangu is also the first Kenyan woman to serve at the helm of a university, following her appointment in 1996 as the Vice Chancellor of Africa Nazarene University (ANU), a position she holds to date.

Prof Marangu received her MSc in Family Environment (1969) and PhD in Home Economics (1975) from Iowa State University. She went on to teach in several universities in the United States as a visiting professor and then returned to Kenya in 1977.

She taught Home Economics at Kenyatta University (KU), rising to become the head of the Department of Home Economics in 1988, which is also the year she was appointed a full professor. The following year, she won a Fulbright Scholarship which saw her return to the US as a visiting international professor until 1995.

In the course of her teaching career, Prof Leah Marangu has built a wealth of research expertise on women’s health, the role of women in food production, and science education for the girl child.

Through links with her alma mater, Prof Marangu has enabled several of her female students at KU to pursue higher degrees at Iowa State University, the most notable of whom is undoubtedly Prof Olive Mugenda, the current vice chancellor of KU. Talk about coming full circle!

More about Olive Mugenda in the next post. But suffice it to say here that through this one example, Prof Leah Marangu has laid a strong foundation for a lasting legacy of provision of quality higher education to Kenyans, and especially Kenyan women. This also lends credence to the saying “Educate a man and you educate an individual. Educate a woman and you educate a nation.”

Prof Marangu has received several awards in recognition of her efforts to improve the quality of education in Kenya. In 2001, she received the Iowa State University Distinguished Alumni Award, the highest alumni award, in honour of her pacesetting achievements in the field of education.

Today’s Standard newspaper quotes Prof Marangu speaking at ANU’s 11^th graduation ceremony held last week: “Time has come for us in Africa to invest in a different type of education, Christ-centred education that produces individuals who are committed to servant leadership. At Africa Nazarene University, we are on the journey to transform Africa to economic prosperity.”

With a vision like that, one can only look forward to a future marked by yet more great achievements by Prof Leah Marangu and her students at ANU.

More grease to your elbow, Prof Marangu!

Miriam Were - Winner of Inaugural Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize

Next on the honour roll of Kenya's women professors is Miriam Were, in light of her recent award of the inaugural Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize for Medical Services on 28 May 2008. The prestigious award was presented in recognition of her efforts to bring basic medical services and health care to women and children in the villages of East Africa.

Indeed, Prof Miriam Were’s efforts are a testimony of her commitment to community-based approaches to the delivery of health care in Africa. She is well known nationally in her present capacity as Chair of Kenya’s National AIDS Control Council (NACC), the organization that coordinates the activities of national and international stakeholders involved in Kenya’s response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Miriam Were’s excellence in the medical field can be traced back to 1973 when she graduated as the best overall medical student at Uganda’s Makerere University. She went on to specialize in community public health and received her Master of Public Health (1976) and Doctor of Public Health (1981) from Johns Hopkins University. Between 1974 and 1985, she taught Community Health at the University of Nairobi’s Faculty of Medicine and was the Chair of the Department of Community Health from 1982 to 1985.

Aside from the local academic scene, Miriam Were has also distinguished herself as a medical professional of international repute and boasts over 10 years’ work experience in high-level international postings. She has served as the Chief Health and Nutrition Adviser to UNICEF (1985-90), World Health Organization Chief of Mission to Ethiopia (1990-93) and Director of the United Nations Population Fund Country Support Team in Ethiopia (1993-2000).

In addition to her work at the National AIDS Control Council, Prof Were is currently a member of the board of trustees of Uzima Foundation, a charitable organization she co-founded in 1995 that seeks to empower the youth through improved health, including prevention of HIV infection and malaria.

Additionally, she sits on the international board of AMREF (African Medical and Research Foundation), an international African NGO with 50 years’ experience in providing poor communities in Africa with improved access to basic health care.

Wangari Maathai - Kenya's First Woman Professor

I believe it's only fitting to begin by paying tribute to Wangari Muta Maathai, an indefatigable achiever who bears the honour of being a woman of many firsts. Indeed, she holds pride of place for being Kenya's first woman professor and the first African woman to receive the coveted Nobel Peace Prize.

In 1971, Wangari Maathai became the first woman in East and Central Africa to get a doctorate degree when she was awarded her PhD from the School of Veterinary Medicine, University College of Nairobi (present day University of Nairobi).

She later taught in the University's Department of Veterinary Anatomy, rising to become the head of department in 1976 (again, the first Kenyan woman to achieve this) and associate professor in 1977.

The story of Wangari Maathai's life is marked by trials and triumphs - personal, professional as well as political - which she talks about candidly in her autobiography Unbowed .

Of note is her struggle (together with colleague Vertistine Mbaya) against gender discrimination in the university in the 1970s. At the time, married women lecturers did not receive benefits like house allowance, insurance or pension as did their male counterparts. Reason? They were married so their presumably employed husbands were assumed to be receiving those benefits!

Prof Maathai acknowledges that the situation has since improved. She writes:

Since then, things have changed quite a lot. Now there are quite a few women members of the academic staff at the university and the terms of service have greatly improved for everyone, including women.

Here's more about Wangari Maathai from the blurb of Unbowed:

Born in the Kenyan Highlands, Wangari Maathai was educated in the US before returning to Nairobi to become the first woman in East and Central Africa to gain a doctorate, in 1971. During the mid-seventies she became involved in politics, founding the Green Belt Movement, Kenya's famous environmental and human rights campaigning group. In 2004, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, in recognition of her campaigns for democracy and environmental reform during the dictatorship of Daniel arap Moi. Now a leading politician, she lives in Nairobi.

In the disputed General Elections of December 2007, Prof Maathai was unsuccessful in her bid to defend her Tetu parliamentary seat. I believe that the main reason for her defeat was that she chose to stick to a principle-based campaign and not ride on the popular PNU-Mwai Kibaki wave that swept across the Central Kenya region.

But all is not lost. Frankly speaking, I think that because of her international acclaim as a Nobel peace laureate, Wangari Maathai is destined for much greater things and should set her sights on further enhancing her image of quality, principled leadership in international forums.

Wangari Maathai has made her mark in history and continues to be a source of inspiration in Kenya, Africa and beyond.

Tribute to Kenya's Women Professors

This blog is a tribute to Kenya's women professors -- Kenyan women who have scaled the academic heights and attained the status of either 'associate professor' or 'full professor'.

The idea for this blog came while I was recently reading Prof Wangari Maathai's autobiography, Unbowed: One Woman's Story. The book is a moving story of her work with the Green Belt Movement that she founded in the 1970s and her numerous struggles in the fight for democracy and good governance in Kenya. It's a good read and I highly recommend it.

I decided to take a look at the lives of Kenyan women professors and briefly document their life experiences as a source of inspiration and encouragement to young Kenyan women (like myself) to aspire for greatness -- not just in academia but in whatever career fields we have chosen.