Zipporah Jepchirchir Kittony was born in 1943 and went on to become a prolific politician. For decades, she was an outspoke champion of women rights and served as the chair of Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organisation (MYWO for more than a decade.
She played a pivotal role in women taking up leadership positions and also fought to eradicate Female Genital Mutilation. In a recent interview with Business Daily, she said after retiring, people still seek her guidance. Some want her to attend talks and others call seeking help.
Here is her inspiring story as told by WoK.
Background and Education
Zipporah Kittony was born in a humble family in Baringo to Isaiah and Elizabeth Chesiro. The fifth of twelve siblings, she went to Kapropita Primary School.
At the time, they would not wear shoes and the number of high schools were limited. The only high school nearby was Kapsabet Girls and it only admitted the best.
She managed to become among the top students and was admitted to the prestigious insitution in 1955. The journey to the school took three days in a lorry.
Career
After completing high school, she became an untrained teacher at Kapropita girls. The former lawmaker went on to work for the Family Planning Association of Kenya where she trained women in Kericho about family planning.
Later, she became the East and Central Africa Senior Programs Officer after being appointed to the World Assembly of Youth. She left this position and concentrated on farming until her appointment as chairperson of the Agriculture Society of Kenya, Kericho.
She went on to serve as Trans Nzoia’s branch chair of MYWO before becoming the national chairperson of the organization.
In 1988, the late president Daniel arap Moi nominated her as the member of parliament for Cherengany. She served in this capacity until 2007 then ran for the parliamentary seat but lost to ODM’s candidate Joshua Kutuny.
In 2013, KANU nominated her as senator.
The former politician has also authored a book called Sheer Grit.
Personal Life
Zipporah married Paul Kittony and went on to have three children, two boys and a girl. The couple got married in a big wedding in their village at the time. They met when she went to teach at Kapropita Girls.
His eldest son is a retired military officer while is second born, Kiprono, is a businessman. Her daughter Caroline is a lawyer
“I met and married Paul Kittony in the most uncharacteristic of ways. I had just finished secondary education at Kapsabet Girls High School and was teaching at Kapropita Primary School. Paul was the headteacher at the neighbouring Kabartonjo Primary School in Baringo County,” she said in a past interview.
The sister to Lena Moi (wife of late retired president Moi), Eunice was her best maid while Wesley Chesire was the best man.
The family enjoyed close relations with the late president’s family as he spent a lot of days in their home as a young man.
At the age of 80, Zipporah is thankful to God for her life. She believes family is very important and is close to her family. In a recent interview with Business Daily, she said one can always fall back on family. On her 80th birthday, her family surprised her with a grand celebration in Cape Town.
Recognition
In 1998, she was awarded the Order of the Golden Warrior by Kenya’s second president, the late Moi.
In 1999, she was awarded the American Biographical Institute Woman of the Year.
In 2008, she was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from the United Graduate College University in Tennessee in the USA.
In 2009, she was designated Goodwill Ambassador to the Kenya Society for the Mentally Handicapped.
In 2022, she was honored by the government for her role in serving the country at a ceremony in Trans Nzoia. The ceremony was led by then sports, Culture and Heritage CS Dr. Amina Mohamed. Former president Uhuru Kenyatta’s speech was read by Amina and honored Kittony for helping shape the narrative of Kenya.
“The journey that you started is on course. As a nation we salute your effort geared toward empowering women and girls with the sole objective of enabling them play bigger roles in nation building,” said the President.
