Veteran politician and women’s rights campaigner Mary Karooro Okurut has died in Nairobi at the age of 71.
She passed away on Monday, 11 August, at the Aga Khan Hospital, where she had been receiving treatment for injuries sustained in a road accident last month.
The crash happened as she returned from a meeting in Nebbi district, during which she announced plans to contest for Uganda’s National MP seat representing the elderly. She suffered a broken pelvic bone and was first admitted to Nakasero Hospital in Kampala before being flown to Kenya for specialist care.
Speaking to New Vision Uganda on 14 July, she said:
“Nerve pain was still persistent.”
A life in education and politics
Mary Karooro Okurut was born on 8 July 1954 in Bushenyi-Ishaka municipality, western Uganda. She attended Bweranyangi Junior School, Bweranyangi Girls’ Secondary School, and Trinity College Nabbingo before enrolling at Makerere University, where she completed both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in literature.
She later lectured at the same university before entering politics in 2003, serving as Bushenyi District Woman MP until 2021. During that time, she held several cabinet posts, including information, gender, security, and general duties in the Office of the Prime Minister.
She also chaired Uganda’s COVID-19 National Task Force and, until her death, served as senior presidential adviser on public relations.
Beyond public office
Karooro was working on a large reusable sanitary pads factory in Bushenyi aimed at improving women’s health and providing jobs. She established the Ntambiko Crafts Centre to promote tourism and protect cultural heritage.
She chaired the Bweranyangi Girls’ Secondary School Old Girls Association and co-founded FEMRITE, a group that has supported generations of Ugandan women writers.
As a Canon in the Church of Uganda, she combined her faith with her public service.
Tributes from home
Bushenyi District Woman MP Katusiime Annet Mugisha called her “a distinguished leader whose zeal to serve all people regardless of background set an enduring example.”
Mugisha, who succeeded her in 2021, praised the foundation she had built for the district’s development and urged people to continue her legacy of cooperation and service.
Bishop Johnson Twinomujuni of West Ankole Diocese described her as “a remarkable daughter of the soil” and “a literary giant, a seasoned stateswoman, and a trailblazer whose light will not be dimmed.”
Burial arrangements are yet to be announced.
