Margaret Kenyatta
{{Short description|Former First Lady of Kenya (2013–2022)}}
{{For|her husband's half-sister with the same name|Margaret Kenyatta (mayor)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Margaret Kenyatta
| image = Margaret Kenyatta seated.jpg
| caption = Kenyatta in August 2018
| office = First Lady of Kenya
| term_label = In role
| term_start = 9 April 2013
| term_end = 13 September 2022
| president = Uhuru Kenyatta
| predecessor = Lucy Kibaki
| successor = Rachel Ruto
| birth_name = Margaret Wanjiru Gakuo
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1964|04|08|df=y}}
| birth_place =
| nationality = Kenyan
| party =
| spouse = {{marriage|Uhuru Kenyatta|1991}}
| children = 3
| residence =
}}
Margaret Gakuo Kenyatta (born 8 April 1964) is a Kenyan educator who served as First Lady of Kenya from 2013 to 2022. She is the wife of Uhuru Kenyatta, the immediate former Kenyan president.
Biography
Margaret Wanjiru Gakuo was born on 8 April 1964 to a Kenyan father, Njuguna Gakuo, a former director of the Kenya Railways Corporation, and a German mother, Magdalena.{{cite news|first=Benjamin |last=Muriuki |title=Margaret Kenyatta, Ida Odinga and Rachel Ruto Are Teachers by Profession |url=https://www.kenyans.co.ke/news/19275-margaret-kenyatta-ida-odinga-and-rachel-ruto-are-teachers-profession |work=Kenyans.co.ke |date=2017-05-22 |accessdate=2019-10-14}} She attended Kianda School, St. Andrews School in Molo, Kenya, and received a Bachelor of Education from Kenyatta University.
= Social activism =
Kenyatta has voiced her opinion on a number of social issues in Kenya{{fact|date=December 2024}} which includes mother and child wellness.{{Cite web|url=https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2001299210/margret-kenyatta-mother-baby-unit-to-boost-maternal-health-in-nakuru-and-environs|title=Margret Kenyatta Mother baby unit to boost maternal health in Nakuru and environs|last=Kahenda|first=Mercy|website=The Standard|access-date=2019-08-18}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/2019/08/kenya-to-take-uhc-lessons-from-barbados-first-lady-margaret-kenyatta-says/|title=Kenya to take UHC lessons from Barbados, First Lady Margaret Kenyatta says|date=2019-08-09|website=Capital News|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-18}} She has a mother-baby hospital unit named after her. Kenyatta has encouraged patients to fight cancer through early screening for breast, cervical and prostate cancer{{Cite web|url=https://hivisasa.com/posts/59402371-margaret-kenyatta-calls-for-lifestyle-change-to-combat-disease|title=Margaret Kenyatta calls for lifestyle change to combat disease|website=hivisasa.com|access-date=2019-08-18}} and tackling diabetes by encouraging a healthy lifestyle. Kenyatta is also a big supporter of numerous educational and charity programs in Kenya, taking part in the opening of WE Charity College in Narok County,{{Cite web|url=https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2001334299/first-lady-roots-for-education-in-eradicating-poverty|title=First Lady roots for education in eradicating poverty|last=Kiplagat|first=Robert|website=The Standard|access-date=2019-08-18}} and promoting the conservation of historic sites and monuments.{{Cite web|url=https://www.kbc.co.ke/first-lady-calls-for-cooperation-in-conservation-of-archaeological-sites/|title=First Lady calls for cooperation in conservation of archaeological sites|last=Kamunde|first=Muraya|date=2019-08-10|website=KBC {{!}} Kenya's Watching|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-18}}
Public opinion of her in Kenya tends to focus positively on the simplicity of her fashion and temperament, and negatively on her perceived timidity.{{citation needed|date=October 2018}} Since the inauguration, Kenyatta has headed up a campaign, dubbed the Beyond Zero Campaign,{{cite web |url=http://www.kenyan-post.com/2013/03/unveiling-uhuru-kenyattas-wife-mama.html |title= Unveiling UHURU MUIGAI KENYATTA’s wife.. Mama MARGARET WANJIRU KENYATTA |date= March 2013 |publisher= Daily Post (Kenya)|accessdate=13 March 2013}} to reduce child maternal mortality rates. On 24 October 2014, she was named Kenya Person of the Year.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nation.co.ke/news/specials/-/2101466/2510254/-/g1ub9jz/-/index.html|title=Margaret Kenyatta is the 2014 UN in Kenya Person of the Year - Daily Nation|website=www.nation.co.ke|access-date=2019-03-08}} She is Catholic and serves as an alumna of the Catholic girls' school, Kianda School.[https://kiandaschool.ac.ke/ Home page of school]
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://mykenya.weebly.com/margaret-kenyatta.html Margaret Kenyatta]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kenyatta, Margaret}}
Category:Kenyan Roman Catholics
Category:First ladies of Kenya
Category:Kenyatta University alumni