Adebayo Adedeji (21 December 1930 – 25 April 2018) was a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

economist and academic. A full-fledged Professor at the age of 36 years, he was Nigeria's Federal Commissioner for Economic Development & Reconstruction from 1971 to 1975. He was responsible for the economic development and reconstruction of post-civil war Nigeria. In June 1975, he was appointed Executive Secretary of the

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA or ECA; french: link=no, Commission économique pour l'Afrique, CEA) was established in 1958 by the United Nations Economic and Social Council to encourage economic cooperation among its ...

and remained in this position until July 1991. Adedeji wrote the

Lagos Plan of Action The Lagos Plan of Action (officially the Lagos Plan of Action for the Economic Development of Africa, 1980–2000) was an Organisation of African Unity-backed plan to increase Africa's self-sufficiency. The plan aimed to minimize Africa's links ...

of 1980 that was adopted by the UN and OAU. On his return to Nigeria, he founded the

African Centre for Development and Strategic Studies (ACDESS) African Centre for Development and Strategic Studies is a multidisciplinary research and developmental think tank founded in 1991 and located in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria. The centre is dedicated to policy research and strategic studies of Afri ...

, a non-governmental independent continental non-profit, think-tank dedicated to multi-disciplinary and strategic studies on and for Africa. He received the national honor of

Commander of the Federal Republic The Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) is one of two orders of merit, established by the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1963. It is senior to the Order of the Niger. The highest honours where the Grand Commander in the Order of the Federal Re ...

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In December 2010, after turning 80, he retired from public life and spent the last years of his life quietly in his home town of Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria. Adedeji was elected a Fellow of the

African Academy of Sciences The African Academy of Sciences (AAS) is a non-aligned, non-political, not-for-profit, pan-African learned society formed in 1985. The AAS elects fellows (FAAS) and affiliates. The AAS also awards the Obasanjo Prize for Scientific Discovery and T ...

in 1991.

Biography

Adebayo Adedeji was born on 21 December 1930 in Ijebu Ode, Nigeria. Adedeji died in the evening on 25 April 2018 in

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 fo ...

after suffering from a long illness. UNECA held a memorial symposium in his honor on 7 July in Lagos.

References

Weblinks

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa - Remembering Professor Adebayo Adedeji
1930 births 2018 deaths People from Ijebu Ode Under-Secretaries-General of the United Nations Nigerian diplomats Harvard Kennedy School alumni Nigerian expatriates in the United States Obafemi Awolowo University faculty Alumni of the University of London Nigerian officials of the United Nations Nigerian classical liberals People from Ogun State Fellows of the African Academy of Sciences {{UN-bio-stub