It is with the heaviest of hearts that we at Project Wezesha come to terms with the loss of one of our brightest students, Waridi Dunia Saidi, who died on Sunday December 22nd, 2019 in Mbeya, Tanzania.
Cause of Death
The cause of death is still unknown; he had been suffering from neck and arm pain for two days. He visited the dispensary at his university and was given medicine. The next day, at his father’s insistence over the phone, he went to the hospital in Mbeya where he died later that day. The university arranged for the transport of his body home to Bubango Village in Kigoma. His funeral took place on Tuesday, December 24th. Lucas attended and grieved with his family. Project Wezesha provided money to help defray the costs of his funeral and burial.
About Waridi
Waridi was an exceptional student. Project Wezesha founders, Lucas Lameck and I (Rai Farrelly) met Waridi in 2012 when we visited Bubango Primary School to announce that the top three students in their Standard 7 class would be awarded secondary school scholarships by Project Wezesha.
[At that time in Tanzania, secondary school was not free* and one of our core missions was to cover school fees so that students from village schools could continue their education, despite their families’ financial situations. (*Years later, newly elected President Magafuli eliminated these fees in late 2015.)]
Because Waridi was so bright and performed so well on his national exams, the government sent him to Pugu Secondary School, a renowned boarding school on the outskirts of the capital city of Dar Es Salaam. As expected, Waridi excelled in secondary school. Once he completed Form 4, he sat for the national examinations to determine where he would attend high school. He began high school with an ambitious academic combination of Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics with hopes of one day becoming an Engineer
Video: Interview with Waridi in December 2017
In 2019, Waridi completed high school with high marks. He was admitted to Mbeya University of Science and Technology and was given substantial support from the government for his studies. He planned to become an Electrical Engineer.
Condolences from Around the World
On our Facebook page, we received many messages of condolence from friends of Waridi as well as Project Wezesha supporters who had been following Waridi’s academic journey since it began in 2013.
From a local teacher:
- May his soul rest in eternal peace! My sincere condolence to his family, friends and Project Wezesha.
From former and current Project Wezesha students:
- I’m sending sorry to the family, also so sorry to you Dr Rai for this problem to lose this young bright star. So sorry.
- Actually it’s so painful.
- I was so sad when I received a call from Mbeya University of Science and Technology (MUST), about the loss of my young brother Waridi.
From Project Wezesha supporters:
- I am so saddened by this. My heart breaks for his family.
- This is sad indeed. Losing a young person is very bad because this boy would have done a lot in this world.
- Fly free Waridi!! This breaks my heart!! I’m so sorry!
- I’m so sorry for this tremendous loss. Sending love to you and his loved ones 😞💔
- I’m so very sorry for your loss, and for all those whose lives he touched. This is so very sad.
- I’m heartbroken.
Looking Forward
In Tanzania, resilience and the ability to move forward after loss is essential. Madaga wrote to me in a text message, “We are much shocked for the sad news. But that is how things are.” And our current student, Dibeit who will graduate in May with a medical degree from Mbeya University said, “We must look forward, what to do to make his family happy, by visiting them in June next year” when many Project Wezesha students and supporters will gather for the happier event of Lucas’ wedding.
Honoring Waridi’s Legacy of Academic Excellence
Indeed, we must look forward, but we will never forget Waridi. In fact, we are honoring Waridi with permission of his parents. Today we announce The Waridi Dunia Saidi Memorial Scholarship Fund, which will be a primary source of funding for future Project Wezesha students pursuing post-secondary education. We are delighted to have an opportunity to harness Waridi’s light to lead the way for future engineers, doctors, pilots, accountants, entrepreneurs, and more who will foster the kind of change and development that Waridi wanted to see in his country.
Stay tuned for more information about this scholarship fund and how you can contribute. In the meantime, please consider a donation through our site today so we can continue a legacy of education for youth in the Kigoma region.
Sincerely,
Rai Farrelly