Mkapa was a philosopher king and model kingmaker

The passing on of Tanzania’s third president, Benjamin Mkapa, invites us to reflect not just on East Africa’s fallen hero, but also on the role that his country has played in the region and the rest of Africa. Mkapa leaves behind a full catalogue of solid personal achievements. He was an outstanding statesman, a diplomat and peacemaker, and an ace journalist in the age of Ujamaa. 

As a statesman, he will be remembered as the person who built the infrastructure for liberalisation of his country’s political economy after the return of multiparty democracy. Tanzania restored political pluralism in 1992. Mkapa became the first president under the new dispensation in 1995. He soon stood out as a towering figure in the region.