Arikana Chihombori-Quao
Permanent Representative of the African Union to the United States
In office
December 2016 – October 7, 2019
PresidentMoussa Faki
Succeeded byHilda Suka-Mafudze
Personal details
BornZimbabwe
SpouseDr. Nii Saban Quao
Children5
EducationFisk University
Meharry Medical College
Occupation
  • physician
  • diplomat

Arikana Chihombori-Quao is a medical doctor and activist. She is a public speaker, educator, diplomat, founder of medical clinics, and an entrepreneur. She moved to the United States after living many years in Zimbabwe. She is the CEO and founder of Bell Family Medical Centers in the United States, and served as the African Union representative to the US from 2017 to 2019.[1] She holds a bachelor's degree in General Chemistry, a master's degree in organic chemistry, and a Doctor of Medicine degree.[2][3] Chihombori was a family medicine specialist in Tennessee. She practiced medicine for 29 years in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.[4][5]

Chihombori is outspoken about the implications of the Berlin Conference that took place in Berlin, Germany, in 1885. She lectures about the outcome of the divisions on the continent of Africa that were made. She sees these divisions as a cause of some of Africa's problems that are still in effect today. She seeks to reunite African states, and the African diaspora.[5]

Early life

Chihombori grew up in the village of Chivhu in Zimbabwe. She emigrated to the US in 1977.[6][7]

Career

Chihombori is a graduate of Fisk University and Meharry Medical College. She did a residency in Family Medicine at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee.

She holds a bachelor's degree in General Chemistry, a master's degree in organic chemistry, and a Doctor of Medicine degree. She graduated from Meharry Medical College of Medicine in 1986. Her specialty was family medicine.[2] She is the founder of medical clinics. As an entrepreneur she purchased property that built a US-based Africa House. She is the owner of the Durban Manor Hotel Cultural House in Durban, South Africa.

From 1996 to 2012 Chihombori-Quao was the medical director for Mid Tenn Medical Associates, and the Smyrna Ambulance Service

She is the second African Union Permanent Representative to hold that position. Ambassador Amina Salum Ali was the prior AU - US Ambassador. She is the Chair of the African Union-African Diaspora Health Initiative (AU-ADHI), since 2012.[8][9]

From 2012 to 2016, Chihombori-Quao served as the Chair of the African Union-African Diaspora Health Initiative (AU-ADHI). As the chair of the AU-ADHI her work involves mobilizing Africans in the Diaspora health professionals in assisting with Africa's continental healthcare crisis.

Since 2010, Chihombori-Quao has been the International Chair of the African Union-Diaspora African Forum Americas (AU-DAF). In this capacity she advocates for Africans and friends of Africa to participate in the development of Africa.[9]

In January 2019, Chihombori-Quao launched the "Wakanda One Village Project". The project will begin in Zambia and in Zimbabwe. Both of these countries have made offers of land. The Wakanda project seeks to engage Africans in the Diaspora.

The "Wakanda One Village Project", is slated to consist of five African Centers of excellence in the five regions on the continent of Africa. The five centers are to be centers of development to have state-of-the-art healthcare facilities, hotels, industrial homes, shopping centers, etc.[10][11][12]

On October 7, 2019, she received notice by letter that she was no longer ambassador for the African Union in Washington. An online petition was started for Chihombori-Quao to be reinstated. The letter, from African Union chair Moussa Faki Mahamat to Chihombori-Quao, dated October 7, 2019, was also published online.[13][14]

Awards

  • In 2015, at the African Union Summit - Chihombori-Quao received the "Women of Excellence Award".[15] Arikana Chihombori-Quao: My mandate is to promote Africa in the Americas and more importantly, to mobilise the African diaspora - meaning all people of African descent living outside of Africa.
  • A Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians recipient of several awards.[16]
  • In 1996 she was awarded achievement award by the late President Nelson Mandela of the Republic of South Africa for her contributions to Africa.

Quotes

Quotations related to Arikana Chihombori-Quao at Wikiquote

References

  1. ↑ Larnyoh, Magdalene Teiko (19 November 2019). "Here is why the African Union sacked ex-ambassador Chihombori-Quao". Pulse Ghana. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Dr. Arikana Chihombori, MD - Reviews - Antioch, TN". Healthgrades.com. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  3. ↑
  4. ↑ "Black Press conference speaker talks Berlin Conference and plans for Wakanda Village - Gary/Chicago Crusader". Chicagocrusader.com. 14 February 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  5. 1 2 "Inside Story: Wakanda One Village unveiled, AU Ambassador Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao – Center Africa Broadcasting Network Corporation". Archived from the original on 5 May 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
  6. ↑ "The Wakanda One Village Project: African Union Ambassador Promotes Diaspora Homecomings". Lasentinel.com. 11 January 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  7. ↑ "H.E. Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao, African Union Ambassador to the U.S." Worldkentucky.org. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  8. ↑ "AFRICA House". Auwashingtondc.org. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  9. 1 2 Essa, Azad. "Q&A with AU ambassador to US Arikana Chihombori-Quao". Aljazeera.com. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  10. ↑ Akwei, Ismail (28 December 2018). "AU's plan of building a real Wakanda for the African diaspora gets a jumpstart". Face2faceafrica.com. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  11. ↑ Brown, Stacy M. (8 January 2019). "The Wakanda One Village Project: African Union Ambassador Promotes Diaspora Homecomings". Blackpressusa.com. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  12. ↑ "Zambia And Zimbabwe have offered Land for the Wakanda One Village Project". Govamedia.com. 15 January 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  13. ↑ "Outrage, petition launched as AU ambassador to US sacked".
  14. ↑ "African Union Fires Diplomat for Criticising France's 'Continued Colonialism'". 14 October 2019.
  15. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 27 April 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  16. ↑ Vladimir., Nyström, Ingela. Hernández Heredia, Yanio. Milián Núñez (25 October 2019). Progress in Pattern Recognition, Image Analysis, Computer Vision, and Applications : 24th Iberoamerican Congress, CIARP 2019, Havana, Cuba, October 28-31, 2019, Proceedings. ISBN 978-3-030-33904-3. OCLC 1127283715.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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