Tanzanian pharmacist’s encounter with Prince William

Dar es Salaam. Tanzanian pharmacist Mr Erick Venant, 25, says he was “left speechless” when he encountered Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge;who spoke to him in Kiswahili.

Mr Venant was in the United Kingdom where he was honoured with Princess Diana's Legacy Award, alongside others from Commonwealth countries including Canada, Nigeria, Tanzania and India; who have had a significant impact on society.

He says, ““I didn’t expect him to speak Kiswahili sentences. He told me:Hujambo,hongerasana,asantesana,kwaheri,kazinzuri…”. That to me, he says, was a big surprize. “People began asking me, which language is that. I told them it’s Kiswahili.”

Mr Venant, a young pharmacist is leading a nationwide anti-microbial resistance campaign in 23 administrative regions of Tanzania, which educated over 49,000 students and teachers in 114 secondary schools.

‘I was glad that he[Prince William] was aware about Antimicrobial resistance so we discussed a bit about it because Princess Diana did a lot on HIV/AIDS,’’ he says.

“… she challenged stigma and promoted better treatment and currently there is HIV drug resistance.  So I wanted to highlight the challenge that come with resistance that require urgent efforts globally,’’ says Venant, the founder and C.E.O Roll Back Antimicrobial Resistance Initiative (RBA Initiative) with special focus on curbing Antimicrobial resistance.

The Duke of Cambridge, 37, was meeting 20 recipients of Princess Diana's Legacy awards for tea at Kensington Palace, where Venant was among the winners.

The Legacy Award was introduced in 2017 to celebrate the life of Diana, Princess of Wales in the 20th anniversary year since her death.