Jacqueline Ki- Zerbo : Une grande dame, discrète et compétente, s’en est allée

To Dearest Jacqueline
I have just learnt of your demise—i screamed when i opened my mail from peg and read of your death---i was in uganda with Liz-we have lost a giant—a pace-setter amongst african women and indeed generally amongst women worldwide in the gender and women’s movement-how well i remember how you established for unifem the first unifem office in africa in senegal-unifem being the precursor to today’s UNWOMEN-how I recall our struggle to get undp-RT in chad to mainstream women in the documents for the chad round table-for those who do not know,Jacqueline did the first mainstreaming exercise in the un system under PEG SNYDER as the Director of unifem and myself as her deputy and Head of the Africa programme.Jacqueline-thanks also for your work on the improved stoves at Cills and the sahel—you were a giant —there will never be another Jacqueline-I cannot thank you enough for being one of those who influenced my development ;for the collaboration of your self and the professor in the establishment of the Pan african committee for promotion of Human Rights and the work we did there during our UN years
To all those who have paid tribute to our beloved Jacquline could we form a committee to mobilise support for the honoring of Jacquline by the CSW at the upcoming session in MARCH 2016 ?If there is interest in this I am prepared to take the lead on this thru the Angie Brooks international centre for women’s empowerment ;leadership development ;international peace and security of which i am the Chair—based in monrovia liberia---the centre is one of the outcomes of the international colloquim on women of the same title that was co-convened in liberia by the president’s of liberia and then president of Finland-in2009—.Angie Brooks was the first african woman president of the UNGA and second women president—the centre was established in honor of the late Angie Brooks—the liberian PR at the UN ---and thru it in honor of women in leadership worldwide—can there be any doubt that our beloved Jacqueline fully falls in this genre ?
May God rest your soul and may God strengthen your family at this time of loss— for Georges—if you see this please be in contact with me directly in liberia or ask the WHO
colleagues in liberia to contact undp-liberia to reach me.Your mother has left
a deep gulf in all of us—a loss to your family-to your country- to africa and to the world’s women—may light perpetual shine on her soul
with deepest sympathy
Banke
former deputy director of UNIFEM
former minister of foreign Affairs of liberia

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