The remarkable Edna Adan Ismail – nurse/midwife, hospital founder, health care advocate – who for decades has combated female circumcision and strived to improve women’s healthcare in East Africa and beyond has been awarded the 2023 Templeton Prize. Edna joins previous luminaries such as Desmond Tutu, the Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa and is the first African woman to win the prize.
This is one of the world’s largest individual awards, valued at $1.4 million.
Edna was Somaliland’s first midwife, first Foreign Minister and Former First Lady. Her memoir A WOMAN OF FIRSTS is published by HQ and film rights have been optioned by Neal Street. You can hear her interview on Woman’s Hour below: