Chidiogo Akunyili-Parr honours mother’s heroism in new book

TO honour the memory and inspirational life of her mother, Dora Akunyili, whose life and legacy inspired millions by facing down misogyny and battling corruption in Nigeria to a standstill, Chidiogo Akunyili-Parr has penned an intimate memoir titled, ‘I Am Because We Are: An African Mother’s Fight for the Soul of a Nation.’

The book which was released in January 2022, and hit bookstores across Nigeria on Friday, February 4, under the title “I Am Because We Are: The Story of Dora Akunyili.”

Told in her voice, from the personal lens of her daughter, this is the story of what shaped her to the woman she was.

Inspired by the African philosophy of Ubuntu — the importance of community over the individual — the book gives an in-depth view of how Dora Akunyili took on fraudulent drug manufacturers whose products killed millions, including her sister.

It explores how Dora, a woman in a man’s world, became a cabinet minister, but had to deal with political manoeuvrings, death threats, and an assassination attempt for defending the voiceless.

But beyond this, the book explores the fullness behind the woman known as the Amazon.  In the authors word’s in describing the book, “while the world saw Dora Akunyili at the peak of her strength — a warrior with a gap-toothed smile whose light-skinned oval face was crowned with a colourful head-tie that doubled as armour against incessant attacks against her values and also her life — I saw the complexity that was hidden from sight. This is the story of her multiplicity: the story of my mother.”

“I have spent much of the last four years dedicated to bringing her story to life in this memoir— each step in researching and writing her story has allowed an unwrapping of her — the girl, the daughter, the dreamer, the wife, mother, warrior — her motivations, her struggles, and celebrations, The result is this book, “I have spent much of the last four years dedicated to bringing her story to life in this memoir This is the coming together of her parts. I am happy to share this story that it might inspire the whole” said the author, Chidiogo while speaking about the book. “I believe stories matter, our stories matter, and this is one of such stories.”

“I Am Because We Are” illuminates the role of kinship, family, and the individual’s place in society, while revealing a life of courage, how community shaped it, and the web of humanity that binds us all.

The Nigerian edition of the book will be published by Safari Books Ltd, and is available for purchase on major physical and online platforms across Nigeria since February 4.

Chidiogo is a Nigerian-Canadian author, speaker, and consultant with a passion for human development and connection. She is the founder of She ROARs, an organisation committed to coaching women of colour around the world to connect to their intuition and purpose.

Her work is focused on harnessing the power of our interdependence with a foundation in the humanist African philosophy of Ubuntu, which celebrates our shared humanity.

Chidiogo has lived and worked across four continents and speaks seven languages, including Mandarin, German, Spanish, and French, allowing for an even deeper connection with people.

She led the growth and impact of the Global Shapers Community across Africa and the Middle East.