News People
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NGOZI Okonjo-Iweala, former minister of finance, was one of the distinguished recipients honoured at an all-star event in New York on December 1, for services to humanity, the fight against poverty and HIV/AIDS.
Okonjo-Iweala received the award from ONE and RED, two respected international advocacy groups, alongside Bill and Melinda Gates; Mo Ibrahim, philanthropist and Michael Bloomberg, former New York Mayor and media mogul.
Okonjo-Iweala and her co-honourees were recognised at a grand event marking the 10th anniversary of the advocacy groups.
In her response to the honour, Okonjo-Iweala said “I thank ONE and RED for this recognition. It is an inspiration to work harder on the issues of social and economic development that have always been my passion. I’m also grateful to my country for the opportunities to serve. I will always be proud to be a Nigerian.”
Former President Bill Clinton and current Vice-President Joe Biden of the United State were in attendance.
The ONE is an international campaigning and advocacy organisation of more than seven million people taking action to end extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa.
It was co-founded by Bono, to raise public awareness and work with political leaders to combat AIDS and preventable diseases, increase investments in agriculture and nutrition, and demand greater transparency so governments are accountable to their citizens.
ONE works closely with African activists and policymakers as they fight corruption, promote poverty-fighting priorities, monitor the use of aid, and help build civil society and economic development. ONE’s work is strictly politically non-partisan.
RED was founded by Bono and Bobby Shriver to make it easy for people and businesses to join the fight against the deadly virus. Throughout the past decade, RED has raised more than $320 million with the help of companies like Apple and Coca Cola towards the fight against HIV.
— Dec 14, 2015 @ 01:00 GMT
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