Scholars, Diplomats Unite for Prof Gambari’s Legacies Project

Rebecca Ejifoma

Prominent Nigerian scholars, researchers, and diplomats have teamed up to chronicle the legacies of Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, the chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, to make it a resource portal of global relevance.

The Strategic Facilitations International Ltd, in conjunction with Savannah Centre for Diplomacy, Democracy, and Development (SCDDD), will anchor the project.

A major step towards the commencement of the project was taken on August 6 in Abuja with the signing of a substantive Memorandum of Understanding.

The Savannah Centre, founded by Gambari, promotes research, advocacy training, and policy analysis in conflict prevention, management, democracy, and sustainable development in Nigeria, Africa, and the world in general.

The project will digitalise Gambari’s speeches, books, and all Gambari’s intellectual works and establish a state-of-the-art e-library as a resource pool for research and other purposes and linked to other global research centres with similar objectives.

The former Nigerian principal representative to ECOWAS, Aminu Wisdom, said, “In this part of the world where legacies are being freely diminished by certain events, we have decided to preserve the legacies of one of our own greatest personalities for the benefit of our children and generations yet to come.”

Wisdom added, “We are convinced that the product that will arise from this project would represent a global standard wherever it is presented.

The project, which involves the deployment of a lot of technologies, would be the first of its kind in Africa.” he said.

He stated that the team of diplomats and intellectuals to execute the project was assembled over time with a preference for people with proven track records in their respective areas of engagements.

The Savannah Centre’s executive director, Sani Bala, noted that the calibre of people in the team exemplifies the quality of performance and excellence for which Gambari represents.