The End Of A Season

Late Kofi Annan

Today, Africa celebrates the well lived life of one of her sons all Africa was proud to have as their own. Kofi Annan transited after a brief illness in Switzerland on 18 August. He was aged 80. Today, he is laid back to mother earth. Today, Kofi joins his ancestors in the full glare of top world leaders who thronged into Ghana to pay him the last respect from across the globe.

A soft-spoken diplomat, he was the first African to be honoured as United Nations Secretary-General. Commenting on the diplomatic career of Mr Annan, the President of the Republic of Ghana, Kofi’s native country, Nana Akufo-Addo said: “He brought considerable renown to our country by this position and through his conduct and comportment in the global arena. His was a life well-lived.”

The memorial service ceremony at the Accra International Conference Centre, which started at 8:30 am, marked the end of three days of national mourning for the respected diplomat and was attended by the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, alongside many African political, religious and traditional leaders before a private burial at a military cemetery in the capital, Accra. He led the UN from 1997 to 2006.

Kofi Annan was born in Konongo, in Ashanti Region of the British Gold Coast (now Ghana) on 8 April 1938. He attended Mfantsipim School, a Methodist boarding school in Cape Coast from 1954 to 1957. He always said the school taught him that “suffering anywhere concerned people everywhere.”

In 1957, the year Annan graduated from Mfantsipim, the Gold Coast acquired self rule from the United Kingdom and changed its name to "Ghana". In 1958, Annan started studies in Economics at the Kumasi College of Science and Technology, now the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. He was awarded a Ford Foundation grant with which he was able to move on to Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, United States to complete his undergraduate studies in Economics in 1961.

Annan then studied for a Diplôme d'études Approfondies (DEA) degree in International Relations at The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland, from 1961–62.

In 1962, Annan joined the United Nations. He worked for the World Health Organization 's Geneva office. He later worked in several capacities at the UN Headquarters . After some years of work experience, he studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management (1971–72) in the Sloan Fellows program and earned a Master's degree in Management.

He served as Under-Secretary-General for Peace-Keeping between March 1992 and December 1996.

On 13 December 1996, he was appointed Secretary-General of the United Nations by the Security Council . The appointment was later confirmed by the General Assembly . That made him the first office holder to be elected from the UN staff itself. He was re-elected for a second term in 2001 and that same year, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, even as the world was yet to get over the shock from the September 11 terror attacks in the United States. Annan received the award jointly with the UN “for their work towards a better organised and more peaceful world”.

In 2007, Annan established the Kofi Annan Foundation as an independent, non-profit organization that works to promote better global governance and to strengthen the capacities of people and countries to achieve a fairer, more peaceful world. The organisation was founded on the principles that fair and peaceful societies predicate on three pillars: Peace and Security, Sustainable Development, and Human Rights and the Rule of Law. Therefore, the Foundation has made it its mission to mobilise the leadership and the political resolve needed to tackle threats to these three pillars starting from violent conflict to flawed elections and climate change. The aim is to achieve a fairer, more peaceful world.

The Foundation provides the analytical, communication and co-ordination capacities needed to ensure that these objectives are achieved. Annan's contribution to peace worldwide was delivered through mediation, political mentoring, advocacy and advice. Through his engagement, Annan aimed to strengthen local and international conflict resolution capabilities.

The Foundation provides the analytical and logistical support to facilitate this in co-operation with relevant local, regional and international actors. The Foundation works mainly through private diplomacy where Annan provided informal counsel and participated in discreet diplomatic initiatives to avert or resolve crises by applying his experience and inspirational leadership.

He was often asked to intercede in crises, sometimes as an impartial independent mediator, sometimes as a special envoy of the international community. In recent years he had provided such counsel to Burkina Faso, Kenya, Myanmar, Senegal, Iraq and Colombia.

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga was among those who attended today’s ceremony. So also was Princess Beatrix, the former queen of the Netherlands, and her daughter-in-law Princess Mabel, both of who were close friends of Annan. There is no doubt that all Africa will sorely miss this great son of the Land. What can we say? Adieu, brother Kofi. Your gentle soul will surely rest in peace on the bosom of the good Lord. Indeed, for many Africans and many in the world, this is the end of a season.

Mr Asinugo is a London-based journalist, author of “The Presidential Years: From Dr. Jonathan to Gen. Buhari and publisher of Imo Business Link Magazine (imostateblm.com).