Mongella, Gertrude (1945—)

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Mongella, Gertrude (1945—)

Tanzanian educator, politician, diplomat, and activist who headed the 1995 United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. Name variations: Gertrude Ibengwe Mongella. Born on September 13, 1945, on Ukerewe, an island in Lake Victoria, Tanganyika (now the United Republic of Tanzania); attended Marianhill Secondary School; degree in education from Dar es Salaam University, 1970; married; children: one daughter and three sons.

Taught at Changombe Teachers College, Tanzania (1970–75); curriculum developer at Institute of Adult Education, Tanzania (1975–78); became one of few female members of Chama Cha Mapinduzi (Revolutionary Party); legislative council member (1975–82), central committee member (1982–87); served as school inspector of Eastern Zone School District (1981–82); appointed minister of state (1982); served as head of department of social welfare (1982–91); minister of lands, natural resources, and tourism (1985–87); minister without portfolio (1987–91); represented Tanzania at numerous international conferences (1980s); appointed High Commissioner to India (1991); member, board of trustees of the United Nations' International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW). Served as secretary-general, Fourth United Nations World Conference on Women (1992–95).

Internationally known for her efforts to improve the status of African women, Gertrude Mongella is also a vigorous defender of equal rights for women worldwide. She is still an anomaly, however: an educated female leader on a continent that traditionally reserves education and leadership for men. A Tanzanian diplomat, Mongella has held several government posts and has represented her country at numerous international conferences, in particular at those dealing with women's issues. In 1992, she was chosen to head the 1995 Fourth United Nations Conference on Women in Beijing, China.

Mongella was born on September 13, 1945, on the island of Ukerewe in Lake Victoria, Tanganyika. (A British colony until 1961, Tanganyika united with the island of Zanzibar to become the United Republic of Tanzania in 1964.) Breaking with local tradition, Mongella's father, a carpenter, sent all of his four children to school, encouraging them to achieve. Mongella left the island for the first time at age 12, to go to school hundreds of miles away in Morogoro. There she continued her education at Marianhill Secondary School, run by nuns of the Maryknoll order; as one of the country's few secondary schools, it was highly competitive. Upon graduation, she enrolled in the new Dar es Salaam University, earning a degree in education in 1970.

Mongella worked first as a teacher at Changombe Teachers College from 1970 to 1975, and then as a curriculum developer at Tanzania's Institute of Adult Education for the next three years. Having joined the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi, or Revolutionary Party, Mongella was one of its few female members. She entered public service in 1975, when the party appointed her to the East African Legislative Assembly. By 1982, she was appointed minister of state, in which capacity she had charge of women's affairs. This was the first of several ministerial posts she would hold, including minister of lands, natural resources, and tourism (1985–87), and minister without portfolio (1987–91). She represented Tanzania at many international conferences during the 1980s, several of which were devoted to women's issues. In 1985, she was vice-chair of the World Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievement of the United Nations Decade for Women. She was also chair of the African delegation to that conference.

Gertrude Mongella was appointed in 1991 to the ambassadorial post of High Commissioner to India. At that time she was also a member of the Board of Trustees for the United Nations' International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW). In 1992, United Nations secretary-general Boutros Boutros-Ghali chose Mongella to head the Fourth World Conference on Women, to be held in Beijing, China, in 1995. The event was touted as the most important conference about women in the history of the United Nations. Held in September 1995, the conference was attended by delegates from 185 nations, members of numerous non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and unprecedented numbers of African women. Topics discussed included HIV and AIDS infection, literacy and education, violence and abuse, and poverty.

Noting that change will occur when deepseated attitudes and practices are approached with discussion and persuasion, Mongella has seen her efforts to improve women's conditions gather steam. Newsweek reported in 1995: "African women are asserting themselves as never before. Local feminist movements have gained momentum; many now oppose female genital mutilation and other kinds of violence against women—once chiefly the concern of Western human-rights organizations." Telling a Maryknoll reporter in 1995 that "women will change the world when they lead it," Mongella continues to seek advancement for women on all levels—educational, economic, social, and political.