Secretary-General’s message to memorial for ex-UNITAR chief

The following is Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s message to a memorial ceremony in honour of Chief Simeon Ola Adebo in Lagos today, 28 September 2004, as delivered by Marcel Boisard, Executive Director of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR):

I send my sincere greetings to the family and friends of the late Chief Simeon Ola Adebo, and to all who are today paying tribute to his memory –- including Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, President of Nigeria.

Chief Adebo served with distinction as the Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations prior to his pioneering tenure as Executive Director of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research in 1968.  His leadership was instrumental in putting in place the foundations of UNITAR.  In the Institute’s ongoing training and research work in support of the UN system, Chief Adebo’s legacy remains strong.  This distinguished Nigerian was an important leader at the United Nations, and I am therefore very glad to join you in remembering and celebrating his life and work.

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