Okoth Okombo: Sign language hero who fought for the deaf

Prof. Okoth Okombo. (Courtesy)

Okoth Okombo was a reknown Kenyan professor of linguistics, communication and African languages. He was also a popular author and founder of the scientific study of Africa. 

A great champion of the disabled in Kenya, Professor Okombo worked passionately to improve the welfare of the deaf in the society.

Born in 1950 on Rusinga Island on the north of Lake Victoria where he also grew up, Prof Okombo was a leading light in the area of Nilotic Language Studies.  He attended Kaswanga SDA Primary School before proceeding to Mbita High School in Homa Bay County.

Okombo, a leading scholar of sign language studies globally, contributed immensely to the global research in the field. He is regarded to be the father and pioneer of Sign Language Studies in Africa.

The leading academic in communications and leadership played a significant role in ensuring that sign language was entrenched in the 2010 Constitution of Kenya.  Thanks to this professor, Kenyan schools for the deaf were now required to institute formal education system just like other schools.

This not only improved the communication aspect among the deaf but also helped bridge the communication gap between the deaf and other Kenyans.

It is noteworthy that today, the deaf in Kenya are able to follow television events and programmes owing to recognition of sign language as one of the official languages in Kenya and which is used in broadcast.

Okombo is credited as the founder of the Kenyan Sign Language Research Project at Nairobi University. He authored and published over 30 scientific publications on the sociological properties, vocabulary and structure of the deaf language for Kenyans. 

Consequently, the Kenyan Sign Language (KSL) was integrated in Kenyan schools, media, hospitals, churches and courtrooms.  He went on to implement similar projects in Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa and Swaziland.

Prof Okombo died in November 2017 while undergoing treatment at The Aga Khan Hospital. At the time of his death, he was still a professor at the University of Nairobi.