FEATURE: African women to the rescue

 

After years of chaos and months of constant streams of blood flowing on the dusty streets of Bangui, the capital of Central Africa Republic, a miserable but highly mineral-endowed country, citizens of this former French colony turned to a woman, Catherine Samba-Panza to help heal its wounds. 

By  Charles Mwanguhya Mpagi

In Summary

• They engraved a name in history as trailblazers for women leadership in the African continent

Africa’s female presidents: From Sirleaf to Samba-Panza, Africa looks to its women to fix its broken states, Charles Mwanguhya Mpagi writes of Africa’s three female presidents.

Catherine Samba-Panza (Central African Republic)

After years of chaos and months of constant streams of blood flowing on the dusty streets of Bangui, the capital of Central Africa Republic, a miserable but highly mineral-endowed country, citizens of this former French colony turned to a woman, Catherine Samba-Panza to help heal its wounds.

Typical of the mother that she is, her first appeal on taking power was to “her children” to end the violence. “I appeal to my anti-balaka and Seleka children to listen to me and lay down your weapons,” said Samba-Panza referring to the radicalised Christian militia and its counterpart the Moslem fundamentalist group that have turned the country into a massive human slaughter house. “I am the president of all Central Africans, without exception,” said the former mayor on succeeding Seleka leader Michel Djotodia who stepped down as interim president under international pressure over his failure to end the bloodshed.

The jury is still out on whether she succeeds or fails, but whatever the final judgment, it is a woman Central Africa, and indeed the world, turned to at the height of the troubles in that country.

Timeline

1954. Born 26 June in Chad.

1972. Moved to CAR aged 18 and worked in insurance and as a corporate lawyer. Was active in a women’s rights organisation, campaigning against female genital mutilation.

2003. Formally entered politics and chaired a reconciliation process aimed at bringing the country’s different groups together.

2012.Became the mayor of Bangui, the captial.

2014. Sworn in as interim president of CAR on 23 January, the first woman to hold the post.