Godrey Mwampembwa, who uses the pseudonym of Gado, delved into the world of illustrations at the age of fifteen.  He began to collaborate with newspapers and magazines such as the Daily News, Business Times and The Express in Dar es Salaam. Since 1992, he has worked for the Daily Nation, the newspaper with the greatest circulation in Eastern and Central Africa that is headquartered in Kenya. In 1999, Gado was named the Kenyan caricaturist of the year.

He has made illustrations, book covers, and the book of short stories titled Abunuasi. Between 1992 and 1999, he also created a cartoon series titled Democrazy. Gado received the Prince Claus Award in 2007, and he is a frequent collaborator for publications such as the New African, Courier International, Business Day and Sunday Tribune. He is also a board member of the Caricaturists´ Rights Network (CRN).

In his work, he has criticised the policies and the politicians involved in suspicious dealings, corruption, scandals and dirty tricks of recent years. In 2009, he created The XYZ Show, which is a television series that is completely produced in Kenya and that uses rubber puppets to address very serious political matters.

Sources:

• The artist´s personal website

Additional information:

• Article by Gado about a caricaturist´s responsibility

• Article about the The XYZ Show series