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Singer Stewart Sukuma appointed UNICEF’s National Goodwill Ambassador for Mozambique

Singer Stewart Sukuma was named a UNICEF National Goodwill Ambassador, the first such appointment for Mozambique.

Maputo, 14 December 2012 – UNICEF Mozambique announced today singer Stewart Sukuma’s appointment as its National Goodwill Ambassador.

This is the first time the agency has appointed an ambassador in Mozambique, and follows six years of cooperation between the singer and UNICEF.

“This engagement with UNICEF is a great honour and responsibility for me, particularly this year as I celebrate my 30 years as an artist,” said Stewart Sukuma at the appointment ceremony earlier today in Maputo. “Artists and personalities have a critical role to play in promoting children’s well-being, and this is my contribution for the children of my country.”

“We are very pleased that Stewart Sukuma has made himself available for this important humanitarian role,” said UNICEF Mozambique Representative Jesper Morch. “This appointment is an acknowledgement of his sustained championship of child and youth issues throughout his celebrated and ongoing career.”

"Artists have a critical role to play in promoting children’s rights", said the newly-minted Goodwill Ambassador at the appointment ceremony in Maputo, where he also performed one of his songs.

Born in 1963 in the northern province of Niassa, Stewart Sukuma is an acclaimed and much-loved musician and television personality, known for mixing popular and traditional music, and respected for his integrity, commitment and leadership in promoting Mozambican arts and culture. A household name in Mozambique, his music is now gaining significant international renown.

In addition to his own philanthropic and advocacy projects, Stewart has been engaged with UNICEF on HIV, violence, and child survival campaigns. He has mobilised the country’s top artists in support of child rights awareness initiatives, as well as helped secure sponsorship through his private sector partners to fund performances, workshops, and field travel for children.

As part of his two-year mandate as Goodwill Ambassador, Stewart will lend his talent and influence to support UNICEF in its work for children in Mozambique.

Over the years UNICEF has worked with a range of leading artists in the country such as Mingas, José Mucavele, Neyma, Elvira Viegas, Naguib, and the late Malangatana, among others, helping to place children at the centre of the national development agenda.

For more information, please contact:

Gabriel Pereira, Communication Officer, tel. (+258) 21 481 100; email: gpereira@unicef.org

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Goodwill Ambassadors?

What qualifies a singer, an actor or an athlete to represent UNICEF? And what good can celebrities really do?

UNICEF’s celebrities have a wide range of talents and achievements, but they all share a commitment to improving the lives of children worldwide. And in each case a celebrity’s association with UNICEF comes about because he or she has already demonstrated that commitment.

Fame has some clear benefits in certain roles with UNICEF. Celebrities attract attention, so they are in a position to focus the world’s eyes on the needs of children, both in their own countries and by visiting field projects and emergency programmes abroad. They can make direct representations to those with the power to effect change. They can use their talents and fame to fundraise and advocate for children and support UNICEF’s mission to ensure every child’s right to health, education, equality and protection.

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