Appiah Receives German-Africa Award

Accra, May 8, GNA - Dr. Francis Appiah, Executive Secretary of the National African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) Governing Council has been awarded this year's German-Africa Award, a prestigious price with the aim of promoting peace, democracy and social market economies in Africa.

Mr Peter Linder, German Ambassador to Ghana, who announced the award at the opening of the APRM Continental Conference in Accra on Wednesday said Dr Appiah had been chosen from a widespread variety of highly qualified and distinguished candidates by an independent jury of representatives of the German government, the German-Africa Foundation, the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other African experts. "This price acknowledges your strong personal engagement for the APRM here in Ghana as well as in Africa as a whole. Your name has become a synonym for the implementation of a peer review process that is now seen as a model for many other countries as well," Mr Linder said.

Besides, the award decision also reflected the significance of the APRM as a vital instrument for Africa, its governments and its people, to take a critical and independent look of where they stand and even-more important, where they want to go.

Dr Angela Merkel, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, will handover the award to Dr. Appiah in Germany later this year. In his response, Dr Appiah described the award as 'a real pleasant surprise', adding that he was initially sceptical of African leaders but changed his views when he saw the passion that the new crop of African leaders had attached to the process to make real changes in the lives of the people on the continent.

"These are leaders that want to do away with torture, human rights abuse, and coup d'etats and in their place promote human rights, sound economic policies and freedom in development." Dr Appiah said the award was made possible by the commitment of government to give the necessary freedom needed by the Governing Council to pursue the implementation of the APRM.