Wole Soyinka is an academic, playwright, poet and the first African to be awarded a Nobel Prize for Literature in 1986. He was designated as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador in 1994 in recognition of his dedication to the ideals and aims of the Organization.

Wole Soyinka is one of the Africans most imaginative advocates of native culture and of the humane social order it embodies. His support to UNESCO’s work in these domains was crucial and he attended numerous UNESCO’s high-level conferences and forums aiming to address the issues of African social development.

His mandate as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador ended in March 2009.

Wole Soyinka continues to support UNESCO’s work notably the programmes addressing the issues of African development.