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We cannot wait for governments to do it all. Globalization operates on Internet time. Governments tend to be slow moving by nature, because they have to build political support for every step.

Kofi Annan

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Kofi Annan
Age: 80 †
Born: 1938
Born: April 8
Died: 2018
Died: August 18
Diplomat
Economist
Politician
Coomassie
Kofi Atta Annan
Annan
Kofi A. Annan
Political
Wait
Nature
Build
Cannot
Step
Government
Internet
Operates
Every
Steps
Globalization
Time
Support
Governments
Waiting
Slow
Moving
Tend

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This is an historic step forward in the world's efforts to combat a truly global threat.
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The question is the morning after. What sort of Iraq do we wake up to after the bombing? What happens in the region? What impact could it have? These are questions leaders I have spoken to have posed.
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To go to war without the Security Council will not be in conformity with the Council.
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We had a rule in the school that when you're punished, you carry out the punishment and then complain, which I felt was absolutely unfair: if I'd done it, what was the point of complaining?
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Once you are really challenged, you find something in yourself. Man doesn't know what he is capable of until he is asked.
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The United Nations, whose membership comprises almost all the States in the world, is founded on the principle of the equal worth of every human being.
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It is extreme arrogance for one to think he...and it's usually he, is the only one who can govern his country and nobody else can do it.
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Sometimes when you take a tough action against one side in the conflict, they see you as part of the conflict and they attack you.
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We knew the Syrian situation was complex and there were lots of divisions, particularly on the side of the opposition... This is a tough job... It can perhaps be done if you stand united and work with me in putting sustained pressure on the protagonists or the parties to come together and seek a political settlement.
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I think what gives me hope is I have the sense that the people of Kenya have turned the page. They are keen to get a new political dispensation. They are keen to fight corruption and impunity, and in that sense they are leaving the political elite behind.
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The preservation of biodiversity is not just a job for governments. International and non-governmental organisations, the private sector and each and every individual have a role to play in changing entrenched outlooks and ending destructive patterns of behaviour
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I was an ordinary boy at school, a young man. In fact, what did the headmaster once say? You're constantly challenging those in authority questioning and challenging those in authority. Which was not really the way I saw it. I felt there were questions that had to be answered, and things that weren't quite right.
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literacy is at the heart of sustainable development
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Both parties accept this vision. But we can reach it only if we move rapidly and in parallel on all fronts. The so-called 'sequential' approach has failed.
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Contrary to popular belief, we do not face a choice between economy and ecology, It is often said that protecting the environment would constrain or even undermine economic growth. In fact, the opposite is true: unless we protect resources and the earth's natural capital, we shall not be able to sustain economic growth.
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In all these cases, part of the reasons for failure perhaps was not analyzing and assessing the true nature of the crisis, the resources that would be required, and exaggerated expectation of what the U.N. troops can do.
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The Lord had the wonderful advantage of being able to work alone. Answering why he had not implemented organizational reforms after five months when 'God created the universe in seven day
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I often quote an African proverb that says: The world is not ours, the earth is not ours, It's a treasure we hold in trust for future generations. And I often hope we will be worthy of that trust.
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If you are neutral in a situation where one side is patently being mistreated, the conclusion is that you're siding with this wrong.
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I am not afraid to dream. You first have to start with a dream. Build your castles in the air and give it foundation. Without a dream, you are not going to get anywhere.
Kofi Annan