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Dakar, 8 September 2022 – The United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Open Society Initiative – West Africa (OSIWA), the Kofi Annan Foundation (KAF), and the National Democratic Institute (NDI) organized, on 6 and 7 September 2022, a colloquium on the…
PRESS RELEASE: The Reinforcement of democracy and public governance in West Africa
Dakar, 8 September 2022 – The United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Open Society Initiative – West Africa (OSIWA), the Kofi Annan Foundation (KAF), and the National Democratic Institute (NDI) organized, on 6 and 7 September 2022, a colloquium on the enhancement of democracy and good governance in West Africa. The colloquium brought together around sixty participants, including experts and practitioners in governance and peacebuilding, and representatives of think tanks and research organizations. The colloquium was enhanced by the presence of Mr Kabiné Komara, former Prime Minister of the…
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Sadly, principled statesmen and women who can forge bold, morally consistent responses to today’s global problems are in short supply. We must therefore safeguard and promote the virtues that the former UN secretary-general embodied. This article originally appeared in Project Syndicate on May 13, 2022. GENEVA – The world is facing a…
Kofi Annan’s Lessons in Global Leadership
Sadly, principled statesmen and women who can forge bold, morally consistent responses to today’s global problems are in short supply. We must therefore safeguard and promote the virtues that the former UN secretary-general embodied. This article originally appeared in Project Syndicate on May 13, 2022. GENEVA – The world is facing a set of acute crises without recent parallel: a war in Europe that could escalate into a nuclear conflict, skyrocketing food prices that are hitting the poor the hardest, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the climate emergency. We need principled statesmen and women to forge bold, morally consistent responses to…
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The Geneva Observer spoke to Extremely Together leader Hajer Sharief on the topic of women’s rights in Libya, where the country’s first female foreign minister Najla El-Mangoush is under pressure to leave after only seven weeks into the job. Hajer has been vocal in denouncing her country’s deeply ingrained culture of excluding…
Women’s Rights Held Hostage in Libya by The Geneva Observer
The Geneva Observer spoke to Extremely Together leader Hajer Sharief on the topic of women’s rights in Libya, where the country’s first female foreign minister Najla El-Mangoush is under pressure to leave after only seven weeks into the job. Hajer has been vocal in denouncing her country’s deeply ingrained culture of excluding women from politics, and for SUSTAINED, she analyses the future of SDG 5 in her homeland. The below is an edited version of an article that appeared in the May 13th edition of SUSTAINED – THE SDGs DECODED from The Geneva Observer. Women’s Rights Held Hostage in Libya…
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Kofi Annan Foundation Executive Director Corinne Momal-Vanian spoke with Michael McKay about Kofi Annan’s legacy and the Foundation’s work. As part of the #mckayinterview series, Michael McKay interviewed our Executive Director, Corinne Momal-Vanian. They discuss why Kofi Annan was so admired, respected and sought after, why Kofi Annan’s legacy matters, what the…
Michael McKay talks to Corinne Momal-Vanian about the work of the Foundation
Kofi Annan Foundation Executive Director Corinne Momal-Vanian spoke with Michael McKay about Kofi Annan’s legacy and the Foundation’s work. As part of the #mckayinterview series, Michael McKay interviewed our Executive Director, Corinne Momal-Vanian. They discuss why Kofi Annan was so admired, respected and sought after, why Kofi Annan’s legacy matters, what the Foundation does in democracy, gender equality and inclusion, transitions to peace and promoting youth leadership. Listen below or find the episode on World Radio Switzerland, AnchorFM and Spotify.
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As the saga continues to unfold in the US over last week’s riot on the Capitol building, Sébastien Brack, Head of Elections & Democracy at the Kofi Annan Foundation, explores what it will take to restore the shine of the City on the Hill. “The outcome of elections should be determined in…
Restoring the shine of the City on the Hill: An urgent global priority
As the saga continues to unfold in the US over last week’s riot on the Capitol building, Sébastien Brack, Head of Elections & Democracy at the Kofi Annan Foundation, explores what it will take to restore the shine of the City on the Hill. “The outcome of elections should be determined in the ballot box, not in the streets”, said Kofi Annan forcefully after the Kenyan election crisis of 2007-2008, but recent events in the USA have highlighted that the challenge exists in established and fledgeling democracies alike. Though consistent with President Trump’s discourse over the past four years and…
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An open letter from Kofi Annan Foundation Board member Graça Machel, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Dr. Vera Songwe, and Maria Ramos. COVID-19 has unearthed massive inequalities within our societies and brought to glaring light the unique burdens which women carry the world over. As we respond to the impacts of COVID-19 both in…
Open Letter: Times of unprecedented crisis present unique opportunities for unprecedented action
An open letter from Kofi Annan Foundation Board member Graça Machel, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Dr. Vera Songwe, and Maria Ramos. COVID-19 has unearthed massive inequalities within our societies and brought to glaring light the unique burdens which women carry the world over. As we respond to the impacts of COVID-19 both in the immediate and long term, we have an unprecedented opportunity to completely redesign our ways of living with innovative and large-scale action to cater for the magnitude of the task of transforming the African continent. Allocation of response resources should be targeted towards the immediate needs of managing…
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The following article is based on the press release originally published by the African Union Commission. MAY 25, 2020: On the occasion of Africa Day, the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Quartey Thomas Kwesi, today announces a new African Union initiative under the auspices of the Africa Centres for…
African Union Commission announces new programme in honour of Kofi Annan
The following article is based on the press release originally published by the African Union Commission. MAY 25, 2020: On the occasion of Africa Day, the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Quartey Thomas Kwesi, today announces a new African Union initiative under the auspices of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) – the Kofi Annan Global Health Leadership Programme – in memory of the late Kofi Atta Annan, seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and founding chair of the Kofi Annan Foundation. In April 2001, Kofi Annan, then Secretary-General, stood before Heads of State…
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Geneva – April 8, 2020: Today, the former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, would have been 82 years old. On this occasion, Geneva Airport announces that its protocol lounge will be renamed “Espace Kofi Annan.” This gesture honours a man who unceasingly fought for international cooperation to tackle global challenges,…
Geneva Airport dedicates its protocol salon to Kofi Annan
Geneva – April 8, 2020: Today, the former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, would have been 82 years old. On this occasion, Geneva Airport announces that its protocol lounge will be renamed “Espace Kofi Annan.” This gesture honours a man who unceasingly fought for international cooperation to tackle global challenges, something which has never been more relevant than today, given the global crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic. At a time when the world is facing unprecedented threats and disruptions due to COVID-19, we recall Kofi Annan’s ever-important words; “It makes sense that we all come together to…
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The following article was originally published by the International Peace Institute. “Diplomacy is about the alignment of interests, and politics is the pursuit of interests, often in contradiction to other parties’ interests,” said Alan Doss, the veteran leader of multiple United Nations peacekeeping missions. “I found that missions were taking the…
Foundation president Alan Doss on Diplomacy and Politics in United Nations Peacekeeping
The following article was originally published by the International Peace Institute. “Diplomacy is about the alignment of interests, and politics is the pursuit of interests, often in contradiction to other parties’ interests,” said Alan Doss, the veteran leader of multiple United Nations peacekeeping missions. “I found that missions were taking the diplomacy route, but those in power were on political pursuits.” Mr. Doss, now the President of the Kofi Annan Foundation, was speaking at a February 10th Speaker Series discussion of his new book ‘A Peacekeeper in Africa: Learning from UN Interventions in Other People’s Wars’. The book is…
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The following article originally appeared in the New York Times special World Review: The State of Democracy, a special section that examines global policy and affairs through the perspectives of thought leaders and commentators. A version of this article also appears in print on Oct. 18, 2019, in The New York Times International Edition.…
How Does the Age of Fake News Impact Democracy in the Developing World?
The following article originally appeared in the New York Times special World Review: The State of Democracy, a special section that examines global policy and affairs through the perspectives of thought leaders and commentators. A version of this article also appears in print on Oct. 18, 2019, in The New York Times International Edition. — Post-Truth Politics Afflicts the Global South, Too – by Laura Chinchilla Centuries before the age of social media, in his “Politics,” Aristotle explicitly outlined the vital trait that sustains modern democratic coexistence, separates us from other species and makes us, in his famous words, a “political animal”:…
