Does Strive Masiyiwa need introductions in Zimbabwe? Well, I suppose some of the Ama2000s that did not live in a pre-Econet world might not know who he is. They also might not know just how much he has done for and in Zimbabwe.
Masiyiwa is the founder of the Econet Group and Cassava Technologies. The Zimbabwean tech scene economy would be vastly different had those organisations not existed.
Through the success of these businesses, Masiyiwa contributed to the development of Zimbabwe, both through the technology they introduced and the taxes the businesses paid. However, Masiyiwa went beyond this, giving back to the community through various philanthropic ventures.
I remember back in high school—quite some time ago for me—some kids whose fees were paid by the Higherlife Foundation. Some of them even received scholarships to attend college abroad.
At the time, I didn’t know that Higherlife Foundation was a Masiyiwa initiative. It’s wild to think that I have friends who benefitted from his financial support. It’s even wilder to consider that many of you might know someone who did as well.
After all, they say over 300,000 people have received these scholarships over the years, most of them Zimbabwean, I imagine. So, chances are, you know someone who’s been a recipient.
I’m mentioning all this because Strive Masiyiwa has been honoured for this work and more.
Harvard honours Strive
Masiyiwa has been awarded the W. E. B. Du Bois Medal by Harvard University for his significant contributions to African and African American history and culture.
The man’s trophy cabinets must be overflowing with plaques and awards by now. He has been honoured numerous times over the years.
Strive was among eight honourees recognised at the ninth Hutchins Centre Honours for their work in advancing social justice and combating racism, sexism, and xenophobia etc.
His achievements in telecommunications, philanthropy, social justice, and his leadership roles in global organisations and public health were highlighted.
Regarding those leadership roles, the Ama2000s who love their Netflix might be interested to know that Masiyiwa is on the board of the streaming company. Millennials are more impressed by him being on the National Geographic Society’s board. He’s involved in several other boards and such.
Their efforts [Strive and his wife, Tsitsi] to tackle public health challenges have seen Masiyiwa play a leading role in the fight against HIV/AIDS, Ebola, malnutrition, and COVID-19. As the African Union’s Special Envoy for COVID-19, he spearheaded efforts to manage the continent’s response to the pandemic.
In recognition of his leadership in agriculture and food security, particularly as Chairman of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Masiyiwa was awarded the prestigious Norman E. Borlaug World Food Prize Medallion.
Like I said, his trophy cabinets must be overflowing. But it’s not just him—some of the other honourees have quite the collection too. Spike Lee, whom you might know as the director of Malcolm X and He Got Game, was honoured as well, as was LeVar Burton.
Not the time to hate
I think we should celebrate philanthropic work like this. It gives people like Strive the strength to keep going, and hopefully, it inspires other businesspeople to follow suit.
There will be a time to pick a bone with Masiyiwa for whatever ills you attribute to him or his companies. Now is not the time, the man has been honoured and as fellow Zimbos whose flag he is flying high, we celebrate with him. Way to go Strive.
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