Popular Nigerian singer Yemi Alade has been appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) by the UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner.
“We can’t wait to hit the ground running with you, Yemi. We look forward to hearing and sharing the issues that you are passionate about, including women’s empowerment and tackling inequality,” said Steiner as he welcomed Alade to the UNDP family in a video shared on their official twitter handle.
In appreciation of her new role, the singer in her video message on Instagram said the opportunity will help her shine a spotlight on the disproportionate impact of the health and socio-economic crisis on the poorest and most vulnerable people, who are often women, especially in developing nations.
“It is an honour to be named UN Goodwill Ambassador to the UNDP programme, an agency whose core mission completely aligns with mine, to end poverty and to erase all forms of gender inequality.”
She also said she would focus on those suffering from the social-economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
She continued: “Women are among the 4 billion people who are trying to survive COVID-19 without any form of social protection,” said Alade.
“I want to lend my voice to these women and other vulnerable people who make up half of the world that’s struggling to make ends meet. They don’t have the luxury of working from home and are putting their health at risk just to put food on the table.”
“But as we address poverty and inequality in our COVID-19 recovery plans, we can’t put climate change on the back burner, Climate change and poverty go hand-in-hand, and neither is gender-neutral. Women in developing countries, such as my homeland Nigeria, are disproportionately affected by both”, said Alade.
The ‘Mama Africa’ crooner joins UNDP during a milestone year that marks the UN’s 75th anniversary and the launch of a Decade of action for the world to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
She is joining a roster of UNDP Goodwill Ambassadors, which includes globally celebrated actors, athletes, musicians and other high-profile influencers.
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