I first met Amina Mohammed at the Action Aid HQ in Abuja many years ago when we were both invited to serve as steering committee members of Commonwealth Education Fund (CEF) managed by Action Aid International. She had come in representing Civil Society and I was invited by my friend Dr. Nguyan Feese to join as a representative of the Media. It was indeed an excellent mixture of some of the finest brains in the land to include the late Professor Jadesola Akande, Dr. Otive Igbuzor, Dr. Nguyan Feese, Amina Mohammed and Dr. Ubani who was Country Director before Otive. Save the Children’s Fund representative was also a member. Action Aid continues to attract the finest minds, Dr Hussain Abdu former Country director and after him Ojobo Atuluku current Country Director.
Amina walked into the first meeting like a breeze, her smile warm, her brain on fire. Her gaze always fixed on any speaker at a meeting, her brow slightly creased and she is an amazing listener who gives you her full attention. We got along on that committee taking note of NGO’s with interest in education and supporting them with grants from the Commonwealth Education Fund which Her Majesty the Queen of England was also supporting. It was an incredible time of our lives. Amina’s work and interest in the development world, in education, in mentoring and in Nigeria hone through and even after our tenure ended we remained friends and sisters.
There were no surprises when she became Senior Special Adviser (SSA) to President Jonathan on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) serving afterwards as undersecretary at the UN.
Cheerful with a hearty laughter among her friends, she does not suffer fools gladly at her workplace; firm, empathetic and a stickler for details, an asset to any nation or organisation. Amina went on to become our beloved Minister of Environment, a position she locked down admirably. It was from here that she was again invited to the UN to become the Deputy UN Secretary General; a worthy position for a woman after my heart.
Two days before her departure we all sat down to an informal get-together organised by Dr. Mairo Mandara, Country Director Bill and Melinda Gates foundation and Moji Makanjuola, veteran broadcaster. It was a night to remember, hugs, good food, laughter, testimonies and a dancing Deputy UN Secretary General with all her friends.
As Amina settles on the 53rd floor of the UN House in New York, this is wishing her a most successful tenure and God’s protection as she makes Nigeria proud.
Here are five books in honour of the Deputy UN Secretary General, my sister and friend Amina Mohammed.
1) Amina is a passionate human being, passionate about humanity, development, education, the environment, anything to make the world better. The World Without Us by Alan Weisman is therefore a fitting tribute. This book is an incredible read which has much to do with the environment. Amina’s phenomenal Ogoni clean-up campaign stood her in good stead with members of the Niger Delta community. The world without us is a book that showcases the planet without our intervention. A truly good book to celebrate our world Ambassador.
2) Silent Spring by Rachael Carson is the book that spurred revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land and water. Carson’s passionate concern for the future of our planet is unparalleled just like Amina Mohammed’s continuous concern for how Africa fares on environmental matters, policy, action, development.
3) The Element by Sir Ken Robinson: Amina Mohammed’s ever robust discourse on education, Girl-child education, education for nomads, education for fishermen, for children in difficult terrains never ceases to amaze. She is a true amazon for education. Sir Ken Robinson’s book The Element is a good read in her honour. Sir Ken Robinson’s blockbuster TED talks have become modern cerebral folklore, and for good reason – his insights on education and creativity, neatly delivered in punchy, sound bite-ready packages, are today’s loudest, most succinct rally cry for a much-needed revolution. That’s precisely what he does in The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything – a passionate celebration for the wide spectrum of human ability and creativity, which current educational models consistently limit and try to fit into predetermined boxes, extricating rather than encouraging young people’s unique abilities and talents. From Paul McCartney to Paulo Coelho to Vidal Sassoon, Robinson demonstrates the power of properly harnessing innate creativity through fascinating case studies and personal stories, and offers a powerful vision for bringing this respect for natural talent to the world of education.
4) The UN Deputy Secretary General’s elocution, her excellent command of the English language and her code-switching from excellent English to excellent Hausa is most admirable. Her quirky comments, communication expertise and ability to engage consistently and hold everyone spellbound means she could easily have forayed into top level broadcasting and done well. So in sharing my field with her, I offer international broadcast icon Barbara Walter’s book Audition in tribute to my friend and sister.
a) Any faith book: The UN Deputy Secretary General is a Muslim, deeply rooted in her faith and the UN Secretary General is Catholic, deeply rooted in his. Together they will steer the world forward steeped in good moral values of humanity.
b) Burn this book edited by Toni Morrison: This is a book of essays by some of the most profound writers of our time whose conviction wherever they stand is unflinching. Amina always remains steadfast in whatever she believes in, most of it for the under-privileged. We salute Amina Mohammed with two quotes from this all important book.
“We must write where we stand; wherever we do stand, there is life; and an imitation of life we know, however narrow, is our only ground”-John Updike
“Writers know that when we write, we feel the world move; it is flexible, crammed with possibilities”- David Grossman
Congratulations to a woman of many firsts, humble and focused. Amina Mohammed- may your days at the UN House be glowing and may your tenure be highly successful Amen.
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