Kofi Annan: Remarkable achievements of former UN general secretary that you need to know

Former UN secretary general, Kofi Annan passed away on August 18, Saturday. The Ghanaian, who served as secretary general for the years between 1997 to 2006, died due to old-age related illnesses. 

Annan passed away at a hospital in Bern, Switzerland. Nane, his wife and all his three children Ama, Kojo and Nina were by his side during his last moments. Kofi Annan was the recipient of Nobel peace prize 2001 for his contributions to humanitarian work along with United Nations organization.

During the year 2000, Annan raised a report titled "We the people: the role of the United Nations in the 21st century." The report spoke about various pressing issues such as important geopolitical evolutions, increase in globalization experience over fifty years so UN changes and finds another way of its operation.

The Declaration consisted of a new global partnership which would minimize extreme poverty and also some time-bounded targets, later known as Millennium Development Goals.

"We the Peoples" report suggested new improvements regarding the configuration, implementing new strategies along with ICT4D volunteering opportunities. The motto behind this initiative was to mobilize "natural human resources" to all the genders of developing countries. Soon, the initiative was launched at United Nations Volunteers and was active from February 2001 to February 2005.

The United Nations Global Compact was officially launched on July 26, 2000, at the headquarters of UN in New York. The compact consisted of ten principle core such as human rights labour, anti-corruption and the environment.

The International Community and Annan failed to act for the genocide in Srebrenica and Rwanda. Following which, Annan argued about the individual sovereignty in which protections were offered by the Declaration of Human Rights and the Charter of the UN.

Later in 2005, Annan included the "Responsibility to Protect" in the report of "Larger Freedom." The report was later endorsed by UN General Assembly, and as a first formal endorsement by the UN Member States of the doctrine of Responsibility to Protect.

Other accomplishments of Annan includes his five-point issuance of Call to Action in April 2001 to address the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The proposal created the Global AIDS and Health Fund. Kofi Annan is also known for opposing the 2003 Iraq invasion and Iran's nuclear program. In September 2004 he told the BBC that the Iraq war wasn't confirmed to the UN charter and was illegal.

In a resignation speech, Annan said, "As an envoy, I can't want peace more than the protagonists, more than the Security Council or the international community, for that matter."