Nouréini Tidjani-Serpos (born 15 January 1946 in

Porto-Novo Porto-Novo (Portuguese: "New Port", , ; yo, Àjàṣẹ́, ), also known as Hogbonu and Ajashe, is the capital of Benin. The commune covers an area of and as of 2002 had a population of 223,552 people. Situated on an inlet of the Gulf of G ...

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north ...

) studied literature in France and obtained a PhD and a D.Lit.in the subject from the

University of Lille III A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

(1987). Apart from knowing several ethnic African languages (

Yoruba The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...

, Fon, Éwé and Goun), he can speak fluent English, French and Spanish. Noureini is married and a father to two sons and daughters.

Activities

* Chairman of the Pan-African Foundation For Cultural Development (FONPADEC) * Chairman of the Association for the Institutionalization of the African Intellectual Thought and Memory. (AIMEPIA) * General Administrator of Radio Benin-Culture * Professor of African literature

High-level experience at the service of UNESCO

* As minister-counselor, deputy permanent delegate (1991–1995), then ambassador and permanent delegate of

(1995–1998), he has actively contributed to the lifeblood of the organization as a member of the executive council. He was also a member of the Headquarters Committee (1991–1995 and 1997–1999), Rapporteur of the International Conference on Cultural Policy Research (1998), president of the 11th General Assembly of Member-States to the World Heritage Convention, and a member of the committee of the World Heritage Convention. * As president of the executive board from (1995–1997), he exercised his mandate with devotion and a sense of measured confidence by systematically privileging dialogue and compromise. His actions as the president of the executive council won him the esteem of all his colleagues and the recognition of the General Conference. * From 1998 to 2010, he put his experience, skills, and knowledge at the service of the Secretariat of the organization, filling the role of Assistant Director-General in the Africa Department, one of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

's two largest priorities.

Humanist, intellectual and creator

Due to his intellectual qualities as a lettered man, Nouréini Tidjani-Serpos inscribes himself resolutely in a universal approach. He tries to promote a cross-sectoral approach and is thus sensible to the cultures of the world, differences,and to solidarity. As an

essayist An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal a ...

literary critic Literary criticism (or literary studies) is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literature's goals and methods. Th ...

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

and

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

, Nouréini Tidjani-Serpos has published seven books, many works, and more than a hundred articles in world-renowned magazines. He was also co-director of the ''Nigerian Journal of Humanities'', director of the “Journal of the Literary Society of Nigeria” and a member of the editing committee of the magazine ''

Présence Africaine ''Présence Africaine'' is a pan-African quarterly cultural, political, and literary magazine, published in Paris, France, and founded by Alioune Diop in 1947. In 1949, ''Présence Africaine'' expanded to include a publishing house and a bookstore ...

''. Like all poets, Nouréini Tidjani-Serpos is a man of truth, liberty, and justice. Starting from his first job as a teacher, he has engaged himself in the mission to transmit knowledge, the same function which is at the center of

's activities. He taught Comparative African Literature from 1972 to 1991 at the University of Paris VIII, at the National University of Benin, and at the Federal University of

Benin City Benin City is the capital and largest city of Edo State, Edo State, Nigeria. It is the fourth-largest city in Nigeria according to the 2006 census, after Lagos, Kano (city), Kano, and Ibadan, with a population estimate of about 3,500,000 as of ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. In addition to his teaching roles, he has also performed numerous other management functions at the university: he was chair of the Modern Humanities department, a member of the Administrative Council of the University for Social ,Cultural and Environmental Research, Chairman of the board of the Council of Administration for the University of

's secondary pilot school (1982–1985),and national president of the Association of Modern Literature of

(1980–1982).

Publications

* Maïté (poésie).Cotonou:Imprimerie ABM,1967 * Agba'Nla (poésie).Paris:P.J.Oswald,1973 * Le nouveau souffle (poésie).Benin-City: Ambik Press,1986. * Aspects de la critique africaine (critique littéraire). Paris; Lomé:Editions Silex;Editions Haho,1987. * Porto-Novo, un rêve brésilien (poésie )en collaboration avec Jean Caffé.Paris:Ed.Kathala, Ed.ASSOCLE,1993. * Aspects de la critique africaine (Tome2): l'intellectuel africain face au roman,(critique littéraire).Paris: Editions Silex; Editions Nouvelles du Sud,1996. * Bamikilé (roman).Paris:Présence Africaine,1996.

Honorary distinctions

* 1992: Knight of the Order des Arts et Culture (France) * 1992: Commander of the

Palmes académiques Palmes is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Sir Brian Palmes, English landowner and politician *Sir Guy Palmes, English politician * Brian Palmes MP *Lieutenant General Francis Palmes Lieutenant-General Francis Palmes MP ( ...

(France) * 1996: Officer of the National Order of Merit (Benin) * 2000: Officer of the National Order of Mono (

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

) * 2004: Officer of the

National Order of the Ivory Coast The National Order of the Ivory Coast (sometimes simply mentioned as National Order) is the highest state order of knighthood of the Ivory Coast. History The Order was founded on 10 April 1961 to celebrate the independence of the Ivory Coast wh ...

* 2005: Commander of the National Order of

* 2008: Officer of the National Order of Niger

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tidjani-Serpos, Noureini 1946 births Living people UNESCO officials Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Commandeurs of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques People from Porto-Novo Beninese officials of the United Nations