Outstanding Contribution To African Geology: A Tribute To Professor Maarten De Wit (1947 - 2022)

Abstract

On the 15^th April, 2022 Geology lost one of its finest brains and one of the most amiable geologists to my knowledge, Professor Maarten De Wit of South Africa. I first met amiable Maarten on July 3, 1990 while attending the 23^rd Geocongress in Cape Town, South Africa. We became instant friends.

As recorded in my book “ My Travel Reminiscences” (Ekwueme, 2007), 1989 and 1990 were among the years in my academic career which I can describe as rewarding in terms of contacts with colleagues in various parts of the world through attendance of international conferences. I attended the 28^th International Geological Congress in Washington, D.C. during which I was awarded the Hutchison Young Scientist Award by the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS). While at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., I met Prof. Jan Kramers of University of Zimbabwe, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe. He informed me that he had secured a grant from Third World Academy of  Sciences (TWAS) to enable me attend the Archaean-Proterozoic Transition Conference (APT’89) organized by IGCP 255 led by Prof. Kent Condie, Geological Society of Zimbabwe and Department of Geology, University of Zimbabwe.