REST IN POWER, MAMA AIDOO

One of Africa's finest literary minds has sadly joined the ancestors. Ama Ata Aidoo, Ghanaian author, poet and academic passed after a short illness. She was 81.

Her work foregrounded the lived experiences of African women and promoted the idea of a unique African identity.

She first made her name with the play Dilemma of a Ghost, which - in 1965 - also made her the first African female dramatist to get published. It’s about a Ghanaian man who brings his Black-American wife to live with him in Africa, and the challenges and culture clash this creates.

Other notable works include Our Sister Killjoy (1970), Changes: A Love Story (1991) and An Angry Letter in January and Other Poems (1992). Her repertoire earned her widespread recognition and a string of awards - including the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize and the Nelson Mandela Prize for Poetry.

Aidoo was also committed to improving education for young Africans - becoming Ghana’s education minister in 1982. She resigned after a year and a half, after failing to push through universally free schooling. She was then hired by Zimbabwe to develop school curriculums.

As an academic, she held posts at a number of American and Ghanaian institutions. In 2000, she set up the Mbaasem Foundation, which supports African women writers.

Though she may be gone, the African giantess will be fondly remembered by many that learnt at her feet. She helped us see our own importance and reminded us of African responsibilities in ensuring our survival.

We join Africans everywhere in celebrating her life by sharing this memorable video - in which she picks apart Western mistreatment of Africans, and in which her personality shines. Rest in power, Mama Aidoo.