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Mitsitsin Iri: Labarin Wangari Maathai A Tiny Seed: The Story of Wangari Maathai

Written by Nicola Rijsdijk

Illustrated by Maya Marshak

Translated by Rabi’u Aminu Lawan, Taiye Fatoki

Language Hausa

Level Level 3

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Sunan wannan yarinya Wangari Maathai, ‘yar kasar Kenya ce a gabashin Afrika.

In a village on the slopes of Mount Kenya in East Africa, a little girl worked in the fields with her mother. Her name was Wangari.


Ta na sha’awar zama a waje, shi ya sa ta shuka iri a lambun gidansu.

Wangari loved being outside. In her family’s food garden she broke up the soil with her machete. She pressed tiny seeds into the warm earth.


Lokacin da tafi san tafiya gida shi ne bayan faduwar rana, ta na bin kwararo dan zuwa gida ta na kuma kallan shuke-shuke.

Her favourite time of day was just after sunset. When it got too dark to see the plants, Wangari knew it was time to go home. She would follow the narrow paths through the fields, crossing rivers as she went.


Duk da kwazan da ta ke da shi, iyayanta ba sa san ta je makaranta domin taimaka masu aiki a gida. Da ta cika shekara bakwai sai yayanta ya rinjayi iyayenta domin ta je makaranta.

Wangari was a clever child and couldn’t wait to go to school. But her mother and father wanted her to stay and help them at home. When she was seven years old, her big brother persuaded her parents to let her go to school.


Wangari ta yi murna matuka lokacin da aka gaiya ce ta zuwa Amurka ta yi karatu, sakamakon kwazanta na san karatun littattafai.

She liked to learn! Wangari learnt more and more with every book she read. She did so well at school that she was invited to study in the United States of America. Wangari was excited! She wanted to know more about the world.


A Jami’ar Amuruka ta koyi sababin abubuwa da yawa, wadanda suka hada da rayuwar tsirai da yadda suke girma da yadda suke wasa da ‘yan uwanta a karkashin inuwar kyakkyawan bishiyoyin Kenya a daji.

At the American university Wangari learnt many new things. She studied plants and how they grow. And she remembered how she grew: playing games with her brothers in the shade of the trees in the beautiful Kenyan forests.


Da zarar ta koyi wani abu ya kan kara mata kaunar mutan Kenya, ta na son ganin su cikin farin ciki da ‘yanci, ta kan kuma tuna Afurika a matsayin gida.

The more she learnt, the more she realised that she loved the people of Kenya. She wanted them to be happy and free. The more she learnt, the more she remembered her African home.


Yayin da kamala karatun ta, sai ta dawo gida. Amma kasarta ta canja, manyan gonaki sun hade hade da hanya. Mata basu da itacen girki sanan jama’ar gari sun talauce, yara suna fama da yunwa.

When she had finished her studies, she returned to Kenya. But her country had changed. Huge farms stretched across the land. Women had no wood to make cooking fires. The people were poor and the children were hungry.


Wangari ta taimakawa mata sosai sun sami kudi saboda ta koya musu yadda za su shuka bishiyoyi su sayar dan taimakawa iyalensu. Wannan yasa mata suka zama masu alfahari da kansu.

Wangari knew what to do. She taught the women how to plant trees from seeds. The women sold the trees and used the money to look after their families. The women were very happy. Wangari had helped them to feel powerful and strong.


Bayan lokaci mai tsawo bishiyoyi sun girma sun zama daji, koguna suka fara gudanya, sakonta sai ya fara mamaye Afurika. A yau milliyoyin bishiyoyi sun samu a sakamakon gudunmuwar irin da Wangari ta samar.

As time passed, the new trees grew into forests, and the rivers started flowing again. Wangari’s message spread across Africa. Today, millions of trees have grown from Wangari’s seeds.


Mutanen duniya baki daya sun yaba da kwazon ta, saboda haka ne ma aka karama ta da shahararriyar kyautar nan ta zaman lafiya ta duniya (NOVEL). Ita ce mace ta farko da ta fara samun kyautar a Afurika.

Wangari had worked hard. People all over the world took notice, and gave her a famous prize. It is called the Nobel Peace Prize, and she was the first African woman ever to receive it.


Wangari ta mutu a shekara ta dubu biyu da sha daya (2011), amma mu kan tuna ta duk lokacin da muka ga kyawawan bishiyoyi.

Wangari died in 2011, but we can think of her every time we see a beautiful tree.


Written by: Nicola Rijsdijk
Illustrated by: Maya Marshak
Translated by: Rabi’u Aminu Lawan, Taiye Fatoki
Language: Hausa
Level: Level 3
Source: A Tiny Seed: The Story of Wangari Maathai from African Storybook
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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