Alcorn to host Ambassador to the UN from Rwanda

Alcorn to host Ambassador to the UN from Rwanda

As part of its United Nations Lecture Series, Alcorn State University Office of Global Programs will host His Excellency Eugene-Richard Gasana, Ambassador to the United Nations from Rwanda, April 24, 2014, 10:00-11:00 a.m. in the J.D. Boyd Library, Medgar Evers Auditorium.

Ambassador Gasana will present his lecture entitled “Twenty Years of Progress in Rwanda following the 1994 Genocide”.

Dr. Dovi Alipoe, director of the Office of Global Programs, stated, “We invite students, employees, alumni and community members to our lecture series. Ambassador Gasana will share how Rwanda experiencied one of the worst genocides in recorded human history. The number of people killed was estimated at over 800,000. This lecture will chronicle the struggles and progress made in ethnic reconciliation and development as Rwanda marks the 20th anniversary of the event and looks forward to the future. In addition, the Ambassador will highlight the role and contributions of the international community.”

This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Alipoe at [email protected] or 601.877.6543.

About H.E. Mr. Eugene Richard Gasana

H. E. Mr. Eugene Richard Gasana, presently permanent representative, Ambassador of the Republic of Rwanda to the United Nations, is a Rwandan career diplomat with 20 years of diplomatic experience in various capacities.His diplomatic feats have ranged from posts in Germany and Switzerland to New York, USA. He has represented Rwanda in the United Nations Office in Geneva, Switzerland, World Trade Organization, World Health Organization, World Intellectual Property Organization, the United Nations Refugee Agency (High Commissioner for Refugees), and International Telecommunication Union. His Excellency was also Chair of the Group of African Ambassadors and led the group at the World Summit against racism in South Africa in 2001 and headed the United Nations Peacebuilding Commission in 2011. Recently, Ambassador Gasana was appointed as cabinet member and Ministerof State in charge of cooperation in Rwanda while concurrently spearheading Rwanda’s membership on the United Nations Security Council. Ambassador Gasana is fluent in Kinyarwanda, German, French, English and Swahili.