Godwin Obasi

Godwin Olu Patrick Obasi FAAS (24 December 1933 – 3 March 2007) was a Nigerian meteorologist and the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) from 1984 to 2003. He was the first Secretariat employee to be named Secretary-General and the first African to serve as the head of a UN agency.

This article is about the meteorologist. For the politician, see Godwin Obaseki.

Godwin Obasi
FAAS FTWAS
Official portrait, 1984
4th Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization
In office
1 January 1984 – 31 December 2003
Preceded byAksel C. Wiin-Nielsen
Succeeded byMichel Jarraud
Personal details
Born
Godwin Olu Patrick Obasi

(1933-12-24)24 December 1933
Ogori, Nigeria
Died3 March 2007(2007-03-03) (aged 73)
Abuja, Nigeria
Education
Awards(see § Awards and honours)
Scientific career
Institutions
ThesisAtmospheric momentum and energy calculations for the Southern hemisphere during the IGY (1963)
Doctoral advisorVictor Paul Starr[1]

Life and career

Early life and education

Godwin Olu Patrick Obasi was born on 24 December 1933 to Albert B. Patrick Obasi and Rhoda A. Akande,[2] in Ogori, Kwara, Nigeria. He attended St. Peter School, Ogori, and St. Andrew School, Okene, Kogi State for his early education. He then transferred to an Okene middle school (today's Abdul Aziz Atta Memorial College). He afterwards transferred to the Barewa College in Zaria, where he was a classmate of Yakubu Gowon, a former head of state of Nigeria.[3]

He obtained a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Physics with honours from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, in 1959, and a Master of Science in Meteorology with distinction from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1960. He went on to obtain a Doctor of Science in Meteorology from MIT in 1963.[4][5] He received the Carl-Gustaf Rossby Award for his thesis.[6]

Career

Obasi returned to Nigeria to become a Senior Meteorologist in-charge of research and training at the Nigerian Meteorological Department from 1963 to 1967, and he was also a Senior Meteorologist in-charge of technical administration at the department's headquarters in Lagos from 1966 to 1967. Additionally, he served as the Senior Meteorologist in-charge of meteorological services at Lagos Airport, Ikeja from 1964 to 1965, and as Chairman of the working group on tropical meteorology for the World Meteorological Organization from 1965 to 1967.[7][3]

From 1967 to 1974, Obasi was a World Meteorological Organisation/United Nations Development Programme expert and a senior lecturer at the University of Nairobi in Kenya. He also served as acting head of the Department of Meteorology in Kenya from 1972 to 1973, and as professor and chairman of the department from 1974 to 1976. Additionally, he was Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Nairobi in Kenya from 1967 to 1976. Obasi also worked as an adviser in meteorology and assistant director for the Nigerian government from 1976 to 1978.[3][8]

In 1973, he served as a Visiting Research Fellow at Florida State University. In 1978, he was appointed as a Vice President and a member of the Advisory Group of the Commission for Atmospheric Science at the World Meteorological Organization. Additionally, he served on the Board of Advisors for The Bower Award and Prize for Achievement in Science at the Franklin Institute.[7][3] He was the Vice President of the Third World Academy of Sciences (TWAS).[3]

Obasi joined the WMO Secretariat in 1978 as the Director of Education and Training. The United Nations Environment Programme and WMO founded the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 1988.[9] He also organised the convening of the Second World Climate Conference in Geneva in 1990,[7] following which the United Nations General Assembly created the Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).[5][4] He also contributed to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification's formation (UNCCD).[7]

Obasi served as the Secretary-General of the WMO from 1984 to 2003.[10][11] He was the first Secretariat employee to be named Secretary-General and the first African to serve as the head of a UN agency.[5][7]

Allegations of theft and mismanagement

According to a New York Times article published on 9 February 2005, there were allegations of theft and mismanagement at the WMO. The article, written by Judith Miller, reports that the agency was accused of using money intended for hurricane relief to pay for office furnishings and travel expenses. Other sources indicated that Muhammad Hassan, WMO's head of training and Obasi's closest ally, was accused of the embezzlement of 4.3 million francs.[12] An internal WMO audit, quoted by Neue Zürcher Zeitung, revealed that Muhammad Hassan informed Godwin Obasi of some of his wrongdoings.[12] It was alleged by Le Temps that embezzled money would have been partly used to exert a “political influence on the representatives of certain countries”.[12] Additionally, the New York Times article notes that there were allegations of fraud and nepotism within the agency, as well as complaints about the organisation's overall management.[13]

Personal life and death

Obasi married Winifred O. Akande on 1 October 1976, and they had six children. He died on 3 March 2007, in Abuja, Nigeria.[2][3]

Awards and honours

Obasi received several honours during his lifetime, including being elected as a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences in 1995,[4] a Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences in 1996,[14] and an Honorary Fellow of the Indian, Cuban, and Burkina Faso meteorological societies.[2] He was elected and an Academician of the International Academy of Sciences of Nature and Society (Armenia) and the International Council for Science (ICSU).[15][3] He was an Honorary member of the Academy of Agriculture and Forestry, Romania since 1995, and member of the International Energy Foundation since 1998, and the American, African, Kenyan, Nigerian, Dominican, Ecuadorian and Colombian meteorological societies.[2]

Obasi was awarded several honorary doctorate degrees, including a Doctor of Physics from the University Bucharest in 1991, Romania, and a Doctor of Laws from the University of the Philippines in 1992, a Doctor of Science from the Federal University of Technology Akure in 1992, Doctor of Science from the Alpine Geophysical Research Institute in 1993, and a Doctor of Science from the University of Nairobi in 1998.[2][3]

Obasi received the Carl-Gustaf Rossby Award from MIT in 1963 for his PhD thesis,[6] Gold plaque merit and medal from Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences in 1986, the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management's Medal, Poland, in 1989, Climate Institute's Award in 1990, the Ogori Merit Award in 1991, the Civil Honour of Merit Award from the Dirección Nacional de Aeronáutica Civil (Paraguay) in 1992, Gold Medal from the African Meteorological Society in 1993, Medal of Merit from the Slovak Hydrometeorol Institute in 1994, Gold Medal from the Balkan Physical Union in 1997, the National Roll of Honour for environmental achievement, Nigeria, in 1999, Plaque of Appreciation from Iran in 1999, the Kenyan Head of State's Commendation Award in 1999, the First International Prize on water and agriculture in 2002, TWAS Medal Lecture in Earth Sciences in 2002,[14] and Zayed International Prize for the Environment for Scientific and Technological Achievement in 2003.[2]

Obasi was honoured with the Gold Medal from the Government of Paraguay in 1988, the Air Force Cross from Venezuela in 1989, and the Freedom of Ho Chi Minh City in 1990. He was made a Commander of the National Order of the Ivory Coast in 1992, the Order of the Niger in 1994, the National Order of the Lion in 1995, the National Order of Benin in 1997, the National Order of Burkina Faso in 1997, Order of Oman in 2002, the Legion of Honour in 2002, and the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland in 2003.[2] He also received the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas in 1998, the Presidential Medal of Friendship from Vietnam in 1998, the Order of Grand Warrior of Kenya in 2000, and First Class of the Order of Saman de Aragua from Venezuela in 2001.[2]

In 2014, Obasi posthumously received Nigeria's Centenary Award.[16]

Obasi has been recognised for his significant contributions to climate science and is seen as “Africa’s gift to the world of climate science”.[7][17] He was the subject of a memorial lecture at the Seventh Conference on Climate Change and Development in Africa in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2018,[7][18] and another memorial lecture was held in his name in September 2021 at the Ninth Conference on Climate Change and Development in Africa in Cabo Verde.[19]

References
  1. "Godwin Obasi – The Mathematics Genealogy Project". www.mathgenealogy.org. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  2. "Obasi, Godwin Olu Patrick, (24 Dec. 1933–3 March 2007), Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization, 1984–2004, then Secretary-General Emeritus". WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. 2007. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U28676. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  3. Ogallo, L.A.; Nyenzi, B. S.; Semazzi, F. "LEGACY OF THE LATE PROF. GODWIN OLU PATRICK OBASI IN CHAMPIONING PAST AND PRESENT CLIMATE SERVICES PIONEERS IN AFRICA" (PDF). CLIMDEV. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  4. "Obasi Godwin Olu Patrick | The AAS". www.aasciences.africa. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  5. "Godwin Olu Patrick Obasi (1933-2007), Nigeria". public.wmo.int. 4 December 2017. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  6. "THE CARL-GUSTAF ROSSBY AWARD". PAOC MIT. 2021. Archived from the original on 29 November 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  7. "Experts extol Prof Obasi's contributions to climate science at inaugural memorial lecture". thedevelopmentnews.com. 29 October 2016. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  8. "Science and International Governance: The Case of Climate Change Research". Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Archived from the original on 29 March 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  9. "UN General Assembly Resolution 43/53 "Protection of global climate for present and future generations of mankind"" (PDF). UN General Assembly Resolutions 43rd Session 1988-1989. United Nations. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  10. "Former Secretaries-General of WMO". public.wmo.int. 8 December 2015. Archived from the original on 8 March 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  11. Olson, Elizabeth (13 May 1999). "5th Term Is Opposed for Head of Weather Agency". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 17 September 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  12. "Le scandale de l'OMM rebondit". Le Temps (in French). 22 January 2007. ISSN 1423-3967. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  13. Miller, Judith (9 February 2005). "Theft and Mismanagement Charged at U.N. Weather Agency". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  14. Sciences (TWAS), The World Academy of. "Obasi, Godwin Olu Patrick". TWAS. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  15. "Asembi.com". Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  16. "100 Nigerians get Centenary Awards Friday (tonight) [Full List]". Premium Times. 28 February 2014. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  17. "Experts extol late Prof Obasi's contributions to climate science". EnviroNews Nigeria. 21 October 2016. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  18. "Prof. Godwin Olu Patrick Obasi Memorial Lecture". 11 October 2018. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  19. "Prof. Godwin Olu Patrick Obasi Memorial Lecture – In Memory of Prof Laban Ayieko Ogallo" (PDF). UNECA. 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 January 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
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