The late former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, will be buried today, Thursday, 13 September 2018, after laying in state at the foyer of the Accra International Conference Center (AICC) for three days.
A burial service will be held on Thursday morning followed by a private burial at the new military cemetery with full military honours and a 17-gun salute.
The general public, on Tuesday, 11 September, between the hours of 10:00am and 4:00pm filed past the body to pay their last respects to the statesman.
On Wednesday, 12 September 2018, dignitaries, including recognised groups, chiefs, Members of Parliament, Ministers of State and world leaders, took their turn to pay their last respects to the former UN boss.
Several heads of state across the world are in the country to participate in final funeral rites.
The current head of the world body, Antonio Gutteres, is expected to attend the funeral.Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa is also expected in Ghana Thursday, to attend the final funeral service of Ghana’s illustrious son.
He will be in the company of a host of other African heads of state including Alassane Dramane Ouattara of Ivory Coast, George Weah of Liberia, Hage Geingob of Namibia, Mahamadou Issoufou of Niger among others, Information Minister designate Kojo Oppong Nkrumah stated. Also, a former head of state of Germany will be leading the German delegation to the event with Switzerland and Finland sending former heads of state.
Mr Annan, who was the seventh UN Secretary-General from January 1997 to December 2006, died peacefully in Switzerland on 18 August 2018 after a short illness.
Born in Kumasi, the capital of Ghana’s Ashanti region, Annan devoted four decades of his working life to the UN, and was known for projecting quiet charisma to the role.
He was widely credited for raising the world body’s profile in global politics during his two terms of office, which included challenges including wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Annan was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001, as the world was reeling from the September 11 terror attacks in the United States, jointly with the UN “for their work for a better organised and more peaceful world”.
He left the post as one of the most popular — and recognisable — UN leaders ever, and was considered a “diplomatic rock star” in international diplomatic circles.
He kept up his diplomatic work, taking mediation roles in Kenya and Syria, and more recently heading an advisory commission in Myanmar on the crisis in Rakhine state.
He acted as a negotiator between the government and the opposition in Kenya after post-election violence at the end of 2007, leading to the formation of the Grand Coalition government.
Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga will be at Thursday’s ceremony, his office said.
Others attending include Princess Beatrix, the former queen of the Netherlands, and her daughter-in-law Princess Mabel, who were close friends with Annan.
Annan is survived by his wife Nane Maria, children and grandchildren.
