Dr. K.A. (Kofi) Annan
Honorary supervisor Prof. Dr. E.E. Berns - 2002 – Faculteit Wijsbegeerte
Kofi Atta Annan (Kumasi, Ghana, 1938 - Bern, Switzerland, 2018) was a diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. He was considered a successful reformer, stimulator, and bridge builder.
Annan was educated in Ghana, in a tradition of conversation, independent and not bound by instructions[MB1] - debate. He then studied economics in Saint Paul (Minnesota, USA), international relations in Geneva, and management at MIT (Boston, USA).
Annan began his career at the World Health Organization (WHO), a United Nations agency, in 1962. From 1993 to 1996, he was head of Peace-keeping Operations. During that period, the mass slaughter in Rwanda and the fall of Srebrenica took place. Both genocides marked Annan. Therefore, when he became Secretary-General in 1996, he ordered an investigation into the UN's actions, an extraordinary gesture of openness on the part of the organization. Both investigative reports delivered harsh judgments. In 2001—a unique case —he was unanimously reappointed for a second term.
Annan (and the UN as an organization) won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001. At the award ceremony, the Norwegian Nobel Committee praised Annan for "revitalizing the UN, addressing new challenges such as AIDS and international terrorism, and ensuring more effective use of its modest budget.
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