Former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan dies at 80

Global statesman and international civil servant, Kofi Annan is dead.

He died in Geneva, Switzerland early Saturday. He was 80 years old.

The Ghana born diplomat was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in 2001, one of few Africans to receive the prestigious Nobel prize served as the United Nations Secretary General from 1997 to 2009.

Anan was the first black African to hold that position.

His foundation, the Kofi Annan Foundation confirmed his death following a short period of illness.

The current United Nations Secretary General, Antonio Guuterres in tribute described Kofi Annan as a force for good. “In so many ways he was the United Nations,” Guuterres said.

UN Sec Gen said Kofi Annan was a ” guiding force for good…In so many ways he was the United Nation.