Monrovia – Tuesday, August 18, 2020 made it two years since the death of one of the world’s ardent peace makers−The UN General Secretary, Kofi Annan, 18 August is also the date of signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in Accra Ghana in 2003.
Since then, Liberia adopted the concept of the Kofi Annan Living Memorial (KALM) which was formally launched as part of the United Nations Day observation on October 24, 2018 at the UN House (Liberia) by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Elias Shoniyan, in the name of, and on behalf of Liberia’s President George Manneh Weah, who was himself present at the launch with the rest of Diplomatic Corps and Government Officials.
Liberia, a post-conflict country that benefited from the largest UN Peace Keeping Force under the Secretary Generalship of the late Annan, is grateful for the critical role he played for saving the nation from self-destruction and bringing it back into the Comity of nations.
The KALM pilot was launched on 18 March 2019, at the UN House, Monrovia.
Details of the programme and the model on which it is based−The Dag Hammarskjold Living Memorial – In Zambia are described in the flyer that summaries the two Living Memorials.
On Tuesday, August 18, 2020, at the University of Liberia auditorium, as part of the Kofi Annan Living Memorial, Young Diplomats for Conflict Prevention were certificated. Two Cohorts of the Young Diplomats have completed the three months certificate training comprising courses amongst which include; Conflict Prevention, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Leadership Development, Community Development and Patriotism.
Madam Olubanke King Akerele Liberia former Foreign Minister in remarks at the said, the training of the first Cohort of 30 Young Diplomats were certificated in 2019 and was financed by the UNHCHR, while the second Cohort of 60 was financed by UNFPA regional programme in Senegal and were certificated on Tuesday, August 18, 2020.
According to her, The Kofi Annan Institute and the Angie Brooks International Centre-both the lead implementing partners of the initiative are indebted to these Institutions.
“They will constitute the core of what is nothing short of Liberia’s reservoir of “ome-grown conflict preventers and Peacemakers. This is how Liberia is remembering our African Icon Kofi Annan – Taking his legacy into the future as we dedicate ourselves to Sustaining Liberia’s Peace, for which he strove and contributed to making possible through the UNMIL’s mission to bring “Mama Liberia back into the comity of nations.”