Highlights of the 1987 Africa Prize

Click on the links below to see biographies and full texts of the speeches.

On 17 September 1987, more than 1200 diplomats, dignitaries and Hunger Project supporters filled the New York Hilton Grand Ballroom to honor President Abdou Diouf of Senegal and Professor Thomas Odhiambo of Kenya as the joint winners of the first annual Africa Prize for Leadership for the Sustainable End of Hunger. This historic ceremony was reported on in The New York Times and by international wire services. Joining Master of Ceremonies John Denver at the dais were the winners and their wives, Their Highnesses Prince Sadruddin and Princess Catherine Aga Khan, jury chairman Robert S. McNamara, Global Executive Director Joan Holmes, Board Chairman Ian Watson and Vicky Watson.

In addition to diplomatic representation from 70 countries, those present included dozens of leaders from nongovernmental organizations, from the UN, the World Bank, senior officials from U.S. government agencies as well as corporate sponsors of the prize. Delegations of Hunger Project staff and volunteers from 17 nations were present, including 80 from Canada, 44 from Japan, 26 from Sweden and 13 from India.

Prior to the event, the laureates - along with Joan Holmes - were welcomed to the White House by President Reagan.

At the ceremony, Joan Holmes spoke to the importance of leadership for Africa's future.

In his acceptance speech, President Diouf called upon leaders to replace stopgap measures with structural changes, and for all those involved "to strengthen their will, increase their endurance and fire up their imaginations." He called upon non governmental organizations to work side by side with governments in calling for an "economic peace" to resolve Africa’s debt crisis.

Professor Odhiambo spoke of "inventing a future" for Africa and urged political leaders to work in close partnership with researchers.

Read at the ceremony were messages of support from UN Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, Norway’s Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, Common wealth Secretary-General Shridath Ramphal, OAU Chairman and Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda, and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, among others.

Following the addresses by the prize winners, entertainment was provided by the cast of Sarafina! dynamic young musicians from the townships of South Africa. Sarafina! which opened the following week at New York’s Lincoln Center, commemorates the 1976 Soweto uprising. The evening was concluded with an a cappella performance by Mr. Denver.