Wafula Sitawa becomes the first Kenyan to win a BET award

BRIAN NDUNG'U Lifestyle, Entertainment journalist

28 June 2022

• Sitawa who is also a blogger, was named as BET's 2022 Global Good Award honoree during the Sunday event which took place in Los Angeles.

• Accepting the award, Wafula thanked BET for affirming her and those struggling with mental health to keep sharing their stories.

Finally, the long wait to have a Kenyan bag a BET award is over! This is after Sitawa Wafula was honored for the roles she has played in advocating for mental health.

Sitawa who is also a blogger, was named the 2022 Global Good Award honoree during the Sunday event which took place in Los Angeles.

Celebrating her win, BET put up a post in her honor, highlighting her achievements as a mental health activist which has seen her recognized as a Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) Champion by the Ministry of Health.

"We are proud to announce @wafulasitawa as our 2022 Global Good Award Honoree. The Global Good Award is our recognition of public figures who champion initiatives enacting positive social change and awareness. Sitawa Wafula is a Kenyan mental health advocate and activist, who started the first free mental health support line in Kenya," the post read in part.

They recognized her for founding My Mind My Funk (MMMF) back in 2013 which serves as a resource hub that provided mental health information and support.

Accepting the award, Wafula thanked BET for affirming her and those struggling with mental health to keep sharing their stories.

“The silence and stigma around mental health has unfortunately been part of the African, and subsequently the Black Community's culture. By putting a global spotlight on mental health, BET is paving the way for these conversations to move from taboo topics that are not talked about in our culture to conversations we can have on the dinner table," She said.

Adding, "By recognizing me and the work I have done so far, BET is affirming me, and those struggling with their mental health, to keep talking about their personal experiences.

This recognition is also a testimony for all the female African innovators who have solutions for their communities but are afraid to bring them to light because of the statistics and factors that do not favor female innovators.”