Nobel-winning Elder
THIS weekend, the world woke up to the sad news of the passing of the first African secretary-general of the UN, Kofi Annan. Headlines report that the 80-year-old advocate for the African continent, who rose through the ranks of the UN, suffered with a short illness.
The Ghanaian diplomat, one of the UN’s most high-profile and wellrespected former secretary-generals, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize along with the UN “for their work for a better organised, more peaceful world”.
Annan served as the UN secretarygeneral from January 1997 to December 2006 – and put development, human rights, the rule of law, good governance and peace at the top of the UN’s agenda.
Commenting on the passing of Annan, Brand SA’s chief marketing officer Linda Magapatona-Sangaret said: “2018 marks the centenary of the birth of Nelson Mandela – it is a year which has provided an opportunity for people around the world to reflect on his exceptional leadership.
“Kofi Annan too was such a great leader, and leaves behind a similar legacy as he dedicated his years in service of human development and peace. The world has lost yet another magnanimous and selfless model leader.”
Annan, who delivered the 5th Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture on July 22, 2007, which focused on the progress of Africa, also served as the chair of the The Elders – an international nongovernmental organisation of public figures noted as elder statesmen, peace activists, and human rights advocates brought together by Mandela in 2007.
The goal Mandela set for the Elders was to use their “almost 1 000 years of joint experience” to work on solutions for seemingly insurmountable problems such as climate change, HIV/Aids and poverty, and “use their political independence to help resolve some of the world’s most intractable conflicts”.
Annan succeeded Desmond Tutu as chair in May 2013.
Between February and August 2012 he recused himself as a member of The Elders during his UN and Arab League assignment as joint special envoy on the Syrian crisis.
Annan’s first engagement with The Elders came in November 2008 when, with Jimmy Carter and Graça Machel, he drew the world’s attention on the humanitarian crisis affecting Zimbabwe.