Salim Ahmed Salim
Encyclopedia
Salim Ahmed Salim a Tanzanian diplomat who has worked in the international diplomatic arena since the early 1960s. Salim is married to Amne and they have three children: Maryam, Ali and Ahmed.
of the University of Delhi
and obtained his Masters degree in International Affairs from the School of International and Public Affairs
at Columbia University
in New York. He became a student activist in the early 1960s and was founder and first Vice President of the All-Zanzibar Student union. He holds six honorary doctorates including: Doctor of Laws, the University of the Philippines at Los Baños (1980), Doctor of Humanities, University of Maiduguri
, Nigeria (1983), Doctor of Civil Law, University of Mauritius (1991), Doctor of Arts in International Affairs, University of Khartoum
, Sudan (1995), Doctor of Philosophy in International Relations, University of Bologna
, Italy (1996), and Doctor of Laws, University of Cape Town
, South Africa (1998).
At international level, Salim serves on the following boards, panels and commissions:
Member of the Board of the South Centre (Secretariat based in Geneva)
Salim remains an active player in the political affairs of Tanzania where he is member of the National Executive Committee of the governing political party of Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM
).
Education
He was educated at Lumumba College in Zanzibar and later pursued his undergraduate studies at the St. Stephen's CollegeSt. Stephen's College, Delhi
St. Stephen's College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi located in Delhi, India. The college admits both undergraduates and post-graduates, and awards degrees under the purview of the University. Famous for its rich history and many traditions, St...
of the University of Delhi
University of Delhi
The University of Delhi is a central university situated in Delhi, India and is funded by Government of India. Established in 1922, it offers courses at the undergraduate and post-graduate level. Vice-President of India Mohammad Hamid Ansari is the Chancellor of the university...
and obtained his Masters degree in International Affairs from the School of International and Public Affairs
School of International and Public Affairs
The School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University is one of the most prestigious graduate schools of public policy in the world. Located on Columbia's Morningside Heights campus in the Borough of Manhattan, in New York City, the School has 15,000 graduates in more than 150...
at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in New York. He became a student activist in the early 1960s and was founder and first Vice President of the All-Zanzibar Student union. He holds six honorary doctorates including: Doctor of Laws, the University of the Philippines at Los Baños (1980), Doctor of Humanities, University of Maiduguri
University of Maiduguri
The University of Maiduguri is located in Maiduguri, a city in Borno State in northeast Nigeria. The university was created by the federal government in 1975, with the intention of its becoming one of the country's principal higher-education institutions...
, Nigeria (1983), Doctor of Civil Law, University of Mauritius (1991), Doctor of Arts in International Affairs, University of Khartoum
University of Khartoum
The University of Khartoum ia a multi-campus, co-educational university located in Khartoum. It is the largest and oldest university in Sudan. UofK was founded as Gordon Memorial College in 1902 and established in 1956 when Sudan gained independence...
, Sudan (1995), Doctor of Philosophy in International Relations, University of Bologna
University of Bologna
The Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna is the oldest continually operating university in the world, the word 'universitas' being first used by this institution at its foundation. The true date of its founding is uncertain, but believed by most accounts to have been 1088...
, Italy (1996), and Doctor of Laws, University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
, South Africa (1998).
Positions held in Tanzania
- Chief Editor of a Zanzibar daily paper, Secretary General of the All-Zanzibar Journalists Organisation 1963–1964
- Minister for Foreign Affairs 1980–1984
- Prime Minister of Tanzania 1984–1985
- Deputy Prime Minister of Tanzania 1986–1989
- Minister for Defence and National Service 1986–1989
- President of the Julius K. Nyerere Foundation 2001 – current
Diplomatic positions held
- Deputy Chief Representative of the Zanzibar Office based in Havana, Cuba 1961–1962
- Tanzania Ambassador to the Arab Republic of EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
1964–1965 - Tanzanian High Commissioner (i.e. Ambassador) to IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
1965–1968 - Tanzania Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China 1969–1970
- Tanzania Ambassador to the United Nations 1970–1980
- Tanzania Ambassador to CubaCubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
1970–1980 (served while at the UN) - Tanzanian High Commissioner to GuyanaGuyanaGuyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
, Barbados, JamaicaJamaicaJamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, Trinidad & Tobago 1970–1980 (served while at the UN) - Secretary-General of the OAU 1989–2001
- African UnionAfrican UnionThe African Union is a union consisting of 54 African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established on 9 July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity...
Special Envoy on the Darfur ConflictDarfur conflictThe Darfur Conflict was a guerrilla conflict or civil war centered on the Darfur region of Sudan. It began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army and Justice and Equality Movement groups in Darfur took up arms, accusing the Sudanese government of oppressing non-Arab Sudanese in...
2004–2008
Positions at the United Nations
- June/July 1972: Chairman of the United Nations Special Mission to NiueNiueNiue , is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean. It is commonly known as the "Rock of Polynesia", and inhabitants of the island call it "the Rock" for short. Niue is northeast of New Zealand in a triangle between Tonga to the southwest, the Samoas to the northwest, and the Cook Islands to...
- August 1972: Drafting Committee of the Political Committee of the Ministerial Conference of non-Aligned States, Georgetown, Guyana
- April 1973: Chairman of the Political Committee of International Conference of Experts in Support of the Victims of Colonialism and Apartheid in Southern Africa, Oslo
- 1975: Chairman of the Security Council's Committee on Sanctions against Southern Rhodesia
- 1976: President of the United Nations Security CouncilUnited Nations Security CouncilThe United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
- 1979: PresidentPresident of the United Nations General AssemblyThe President of the United Nations General Assembly is a position voted for by representatives in the United Nations General Assembly on a yearly basis.- Election :...
of the United Nations General AssemblyUnited Nations General AssemblyFor two articles dealing with membership in the General Assembly, see:* General Assembly members* General Assembly observersThe United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation...
for the Thirty-fourth, Sixth emergency specialSixth emergency special session of the United Nations General AssemblyThe sixth emergency special session of the United Nations General Assembly was held between 10 January – 14 January 1980 to consider the situation in Afghanistan. As the Soviet war in Afghanistan began members of the United Nations General Assembly requested the Security Council consider the...
, Seventh emergency specialSeventh emergency special session of the United Nations General AssemblyThe Seventh emergency special session of the United Nations General Assembly centred around the Palestine issue. It was held by the UN in 1980, convened by Senegal and was the only special session to have been resumed besides the Tenth, which considered the same issue.-External links:*...
, and Eleventh special sessions.
Other diplomatic positions
At the continental level, following the invitation of the President of the African Development Bank, he has since March, 2002 been acting as African Water Ambassador whose responsibilities include advocacy, sensitization, and mobilization of support on African water issues. He also serves as:- Chairperson, Advisory Board, Institute of Security Studies (ISS) based in Pretoria, South Africa
- Chairperson of the International Board of Trustees, Africa Humanitarian Action (AHI) based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Member and Chairperson of the Advisory Board of Trustees of the Institute of Peace, Leadership and Governance, Africa University, Mutare, Zimbabwe
- Member of the Panel of the WisePanel of the WiseThe Panel of the Wise is a consultative body of the African Union, composed of five appointed members who each serve for three years. Its mandate is to provide opinions to the Peace and Security Council on issues relevant to conflict prevention, management, and resolution...
, a consultative body of the African UnionAfrican UnionThe African Union is a union consisting of 54 African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established on 9 July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity...
At international level, Salim serves on the following boards, panels and commissions:
- Co-chair, Eminent Persons Group (EPG) on Small Arms and Light Weapons (Secretariat, based in Washington DC)
- Member of the Board at the Mo Ibrahim FoundationMo Ibrahim FoundationThe Mo Ibrahim Foundation was launched in October 2006 to support good governance and great leadership in Africa.It was founded by Dr.Mo Ibrahim, a Sudanese philanthropist and businessman who founded telecommunications company Celtel International in 1998....
, an organisation which supports good governance and great leadership in Africa. Salim is also Chair of the Foundation’s Ibrahim PrizeIbrahim PrizeThe Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership is awarded by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation to African heads of state who deliver security, health, education and economic development to their constituents, and who democratically transfer power to their successor. It was sponsored by Mo...
Committee, having taken over from the inaugural chair, Kofi AnnanKofi AnnanKofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
in 2011. - Member of the Global Leadership FoundationGlobal Leadership FoundationThe Global Leadership Foundation is a not-for-profit, non-governmental organisation founded in 2004 by former State President of South Africa and Nobel Prize laureate F.W. de Klerk....
Member of the Board of the South Centre (Secretariat based in Geneva)
- Member, Policy Advisory Commission, World Intellectual Property OrganizationWorld Intellectual Property OrganizationThe World Intellectual Property Organization is one of the 17 specialized agencies of the United Nations. WIPO was created in 1967 "to encourage creative activity, to promote the protection of intellectual property throughout the world"....
(WIPO) - Member of the Foundation Council, Centre for Humanitarian DialogueCentre for humanitarian dialogueThe Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, otherwise known as the Henry Dunant Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, or the HD Centre proclaims to be:"An independent and impartial organisation whose motivation is to reduce human suffering in war...
based in Geneva - Eminent Member of the Sergio Vieira de Mello Foundation
Honours and decorations
Salim holds a number of decorations/honours (including some of the highest national honours).- Human Rights Award (United Nations New York, 1979)
- The Star of Africa (Liberia, 1980)
- The Order of the United Republic of Tanzania – Nishani Ya Jamhuri Ya Muungano Wa Tanzania, 1985)
- Order of Mille Collines (Rwanda, 1993)
- Grande Croix de l’Ordre Congolais du Dévouement (Republic of Congo, 1994)
- Grand Officier de l’Ordre du Mérite (Central African Republic, 1994)
- Medal of Africa (Libya, 9 September 1999)
- Grand Officier de l’Ordre National du Lion (Sénégal, 2000)
- Order of the Two Niles (Sudan, 2001)
- Ordre El-Athir (Algeria, 2001)
- Ordre du Mono (Togo, 2001)
- Commandant de l’Ordre National (Mali, 2001).
Salim remains an active player in the political affairs of Tanzania where he is member of the National Executive Committee of the governing political party of Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM
Chama Cha Mapinduzi
The Chama cha Mapinduzi is the ruling political party of Tanzania.- History :The party was created February 5, 1977, under the leadership of Julius Nyerere as the merger of the Tanganyika African National Union , the then ruling party in Tanganyika, and the Afro-Shirazi Party , the then ruling...
).
See also
- African UnionAfrican UnionThe African Union is a union consisting of 54 African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established on 9 July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity...
- OAU
- UN
- TanzaniaTanzaniaThe United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
- ZanzibarZanzibarZanzibar ,Persian: زنگبار, from suffix bār: "coast" and Zangi: "bruin" ; is a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania, in East Africa. It comprises the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of numerous small islands and two large ones: Unguja , and Pemba...
- History of TanzaniaHistory of TanzaniaThe East African nation of Tanzania dates formally only from 1964, when it was formed out of the union of the much larger mainland territory of Tanganyika and the coastal archipelago of Zanzibar. The former was a colony and part of German East Africa from the 1880s to 1919, when, under the League...