PROF PANTOREN; FROM A DEFIANT COMMUNITY GIRL TO AN ADORED GLOBAL LEADER
By Jacob Walter
Nation Media Group
Northern Kenya is in full transition, at least for the women. The formerly side-lined region is aflame with new hope, ambitions, purpose and an array of opportunities for them.
Women are getting liberated from the chains of the deeply entrenched patriarchy and male bigotry to fulfil their destinies.
Prof Elizabeth Pantoren, the first female to be awarded a PhD in the Rendille community and the entire Marsabit County, tells nation.africa that women here, have battled many challenges to set this avalanche in motion.
“For decades, pastoralist girls and women have been oppressed by men who were bestowed with massive powers by culture,” Prof Pantoren says. They have increasingly trampled upon the retrogressive cultural barriers and shattered glass ceilings of the male-dominion. Apart from being the first woman PhD holder, she is also a role model for many pastoralist girls and women.
Defied expectations
Her audacity has awakened the formerly contentedly stereotyped pastoralist girls. Her becoming a professor is the profoundly peculiar reckoning of a woman, of soul and substance who has progressively defied expectations to inspire many others. She is an embodiment for this wave of historic change.
When she sat for her primary school examination (KCPE) in 1986 at Karare Primary School in the then Laisamis District, her further education faced a glaring and grinding halt. The council of elders saw in her a young woman ripe for marriage; to quickly pick the readily available low-hanging fruit.
Rendille, like other pastoralist communities, have for years, perceived women as tools of trade or source of income through dowry. Her elder uncle led the pack in calling for her marriage. Then aged 13, she asserted her independence, questioned the societal norms, and revolted against the cultural values in favor of her better future.
She subsequently drew ire and all manners of scornful treatments from her community and peers. Others even articulated doom in her future life for defying her elders. An educated woman was a threat to many men. She was branded a community stormy petrel (trouble rouser) when she failed to budge. But bravery and grit were the hammer and vision, the anvil on which her breakthrough was forged.
Thanks to her late father Pius Gati, a former Karare Primary School teacher and mother Mary Sayanai who agreed to advocate her belief. She proceeded to Moi Girls High School in the then Marsabit District in 1987, and passed her KCSE with flying colours in 1990. For the second time, she faced the test of forced marriage.
Elders even convincingly cited a case of a graduate lady in the area whose marriage was rocky. Her father wittily stage-managed her with one educated Peter Leitoro, to avert further controversy. She deferred her dream till 2001 when she got admitted to the University of Nairobi to pursue Bachelor of Arts Degree in Social Work and Sociology and graduated in 2004.
She later registered for a Masters of Arts Degree in Social Work and Social Development between 2006 and 2008 at the University of Nairobi. Her mean feat achievement came when she graduated with Doctorate of Philosophy (PhD) in Sociology at Kenyatta University after studying between 2010 and 2016. Her illustrious career spans more than 25 years decorated with impressive achievements and celebrated contributions to her community, Kenya and globally.
She worked as community development officer and rose through the ranks at the Kenya Wildlife Service to head the enforcement and compliance affairs, and community enterprise development departments between 2003 and 2017. She ran for the Marsabit Women Rep seat in the 2013 election but was trounced by Safia Adan.
President Uhuru Kenyatta then appointed her the chairperson of Nyayo Tea Zone Development Corporation Board in May, 2019. She lectured at the Catholic University between June 2010 and September 2012 and worked at National Rangeland Trust between 2019 and April 2021 as director of programmes.
Her immense contributions to her society have got global recognition. The National Geographic television network featured her passion for environmental conservation and Climate Change advocacy in 2019. The PACE Africa also featured her successful conservation career and contribution to human life on July 30, 2020. It hailed her efforts towards the setting up of the Beadworks Project that saw local women earn regular income from their traditional beading skills.
Her mentorship programmes have also seen a spectacular revival of some of the blasted hopes of young girls and women in her community. Her career has shaped the perception of educated women in the region.
Consequently, the women have surged forward to the fulfilment of their dreams. The mother of three is happily married to Mr Leitoro, an expert in security and strategic development, whom she ascribes her success to. “I also ascribe my success to God, my family members, friends and the community,” Prof Pantoren asserts.