Rosalie Chigariro, Zimbabwe’s first black woman to give her body to science, honoured after four years

Rosalie Chigariro, back in 2021, made history as the first black woman from her country to donate her body for medical research.

She died at the age of 64 in South Africa, but her ultimate wish was for her remains to be used to educate future doctors and scientists in her home country.

Recent reports indicate that the medical examination of the deceased Rosalie Chigariro has been completed by the University of Zimbabwe’s Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences.

Over the course of one weekend, students, family members, and colleagues of the Anatomy Unit came together for an occasion to honor Chigariro, whose decision helped train hundreds of medical students over four years.

Chigariro’s decision remains particularly noteworthy considering how rare such donations are in the region.

Additionally, her decision is also said to have benefited paramedic degree programs, as seen in AllAfrica.

These programs include pharmacy, audiology, speech therapy, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, nursing, and others, and as a result, their students improved their knowledge of anatomy.

UZ’s chairman of the Department of Biomedical Sciences, Josephine Chidaushe, spoke during the ceremony and conveyed the university’s profound gratitude for the exceptional and honorable contribution.

“The gift of body donation is one of the most profound forms of service to humanity. Through her selflessness, Ms. Chigariro became a silent teacher, one who helped nurture the next generation of doctors, surgeons, and health professionals,” she said.

Rosalie’s decision comes from a realization of the fragility and the wonder of life, having struggled with health issues since birth, when doctors informed her parents she would not survive more than a few months.

She chose to offer her body as a last act of appreciation to help others live, learn, and recover rather than out of disobedience.