WORLD ACADEMY OF INFORMATICS AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES
ISSN : 2278-1315
killed, Annan admitted that he "could and should
position, citing intransigence of both the Syrian
have done more to sound the alarm and rally
government and the rebels, as well as the Security
support", according to a March 2004 BBC article.
Council's failure to create a peaceful resolution. "As
an envoy, I can't want peace more than the
Annan served as Under-Secretary-General from
protagonists, more than the Security Council or the
March 1994 to October 1995. He resumed the
international community, for that matter", Annan
position in 1996 after a five-month appointment
said in a resignation speech on August 2, 2012.
to serve as a Special Representative of the
Secretary-General to the former Yugoslavia. The
"I had expected to go into Ghanaian politics", Annan
United Nations Security Council recommended
once told Saga magazine, "retire to a farm at 60 and
Annan to replace the previous Secretary-General,
die in my bed at 80. It did not happen so. It's one of
Dr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt, in later
the things God does."
1996. The General Assembly voted in his favor,
Annan passed away after a short illness in a
and he began his first term as Secretary-General
hospital in Bern, Switzerland on August 18, 2018.
on January 1, 1997.Among Annan's most well-
His wife Nane and children Ama, Kojo and Nina
known accomplishments were his issuance of a
were by his side. "Kofi Annan was a global
five-point Call to Action in April 2001 to address
statesman and a deeply committed internationalist
the HIV/AIDS pandemic and his proposal to
who fought throughout his life for a fairer and more
create a Global AIDS and Health Fund. He and
peaceful world. During his distinguished career and
the United Nations were jointly awarded the
leadership of the United Nations he was an ardent
Nobel Peace Prize in December of 2001 "for their
champion of peace, sustainable development,
work for a better organized and more peaceful
human rights and the rule of law", the Kofi Annan
world". Annan was also known for his opposition
Foundation and Annan family said in a statement.
to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and to Iran's nuclear
program. He told the BBC in September 2004
that the Iraq war did not conform to the U.N.
Charter and was illegal. Annan retired on
December 31, 2006. Several months prior, he
gave a farewell speech to world leaders at U.N.
Headquarters in New York, outlining major
problems with an unjust world economy and
widespread contempt for human rights.
"We are not only all responsible for each other's
security", Annan said in his speech. "We are also,
in some measure, responsible for each other's
welfare. Global solidarity is both necessary and
possible. It is necessary because without a
measure of solidarity no society can be truly
stable, and no one's prosperity truly secure".
Following his retirement, Annan returned to
Ghana. He became involved with a number of
organizations with a global focus. He was chosen
to lead the formation of the Alliance for a Green
Revolution in Africa, became a member of the
Global Elders and was appointed President of the
Global Humanitarian Forum in Geneva. In 2009,
Annan joined a Columbia University program at
the university’s School of International and
Public Affairs.
In February 2012, Annan was appointed as the
U.N. Arab League envoy to Syria in an attempt to
end the civil war taking place there. He developed
a six-point plan for peace. He resigned from the
www.waims.co.in
Kofi A. Annan is one of the world's most celebrated
diplomats and a charismatic symbol of the UN. He
will be remembered as the man who pushed for
reform to rebuild the United Nations and make it
more effective. He brought the United Nations to the
21st century, leading concerted efforts against
poverty, diseases, as well as peacekeeping efforts.
Annan embodied the ideals of global development
community and was constantly seeking greater
stability and prosperity for the world and the best of
humanity. The world has lost a charismatic man,
dedicated to making the world a better place for all!
Orshi Terhemba Ephraim AAT, ACILRM, ACA
E-Mail:
godphraim12@yahoo.com
Phone:
+2348063569341
+2348094860494
KOFI A. ANNAN of Ghana, the seventh Secretary-
General of the United Nations, served from 1997 to
2006 and was the first to emerge from the ranks of
United Nations staff. One of Annan’s main priorities
as
Secretary-General
was
a
comprehensive
programme of reform aimed at revitalizing the
United Nations and making the international system
more effective. Annan’s initiative as Secretary-
General of UN strengthened the UN peacekeeping in
many ways that enabled the United Nations to cope
with a rapid rise in the number of operations and
personnel. It is in history that his “Global Compact”
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