The Director General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Koïchiro Matsuura, named UNESCO Artist for Peace Togolese artist Paul Ahyi during a ceremony that took place on Friday by video conference between Togo and the UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

Paul Ahyi is named in recognition of "his contribution to promoting the ideals of UNESCO through his artistic activities.

A graduate of the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1959, Paul Ahyi carved, painted, made pottery, tapestry, jewelry. He is also interested in architecture and interior design of everyday objects. Many of his monumental sculptures adorn buildings in Togo but also in Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Nigeria, Republic of Korea and the Vatican.

The UNESCO Artists for Peace are personalities who use their influence, charisma and prestige to the service of UNESCO's message. Among them are musician Manu Dibango (Cameroon), actress Patricia Velasquez (Venezuela), musician Gilberto Gil (Brazil), dancer Miyako Yoshida (Japan), soprano Sumi Jo (Republic of Korea), singer and founder of the Gypsy Kings Chico Bouchikhi (France) and conductor Valery Gergiev (Russia).

Original article in French available.