Celebrating 5 Nobel Laureates to have emerged from Africa
Wole Soyinka, Nelson Mandela and three others are among several Africans that have been awarded the Nobel Prize since it was first awarded in 1901. The Nobel Prize is given to people who have contributed immensely in making the world a better place.
The five Africans who got the award at different years were experts in their various fields that cover areas such as governance, arts, and rights advocacy.
1. Wole Soyinka
He is the first African to have received the prize in 1986 for his creativity in literature. Soyinka, who was born in 1934 has been a big force in Nigeria’s literary space.
The Nigerian creative had his education both in the country and in the United Kingdom. He is also very versed in all the genres of literature. Some of his books are The Trials of Brother Jero, and A Voyage Around Essay.
2. Wangari Maathai
Born on April 1, 1940, Maathai is a Kenyan who is very passionate about the environment. She is also into the advocacy for woman rights and the protection of the environment through this organisation called Green Belt Movement. She got the honour in 2004.
Source: Getty Images
3. Nelson Mandela
The first black South African president in 1994, he was at the forefront of the fight against women suppression. He got the prize with Frederik Willem de Klerk in 1993 for their strong fight against apartheid in South Africa.
Mandela died in 2013 and was given a state-befitting funeral days after, which heads of government around gathered.
4. Kofi Atta Annan
He was the 17th secretary-general of the United Nations between 1997 and 2006. Born in Ghana in 1938, he studied economics. He jointly received the award in 2001 for his passion towards human rights.
5. Albert Luthuli
He is the first South African to get the price in 1960 for how he campaigned against apartheid in his country in a non-violent manner. After his election in 1952, he was the president of African National Congress (ANC).
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Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday, October 11, was awarded to Abiy Ahmed, Ethiopia's prime minister, for his peace deal with the country’s historical enemy, Eritrea.
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