PASGR mourns Dr. Vartan Gregorian, President of the Carnegie Corporation of New York

The Partnership for African Social and Governance Research (PASGR) is mourning the passing of an iconic leader and philanthropist; Dr. Vartan Gregorian, President of the Carnegie Corporation of New York. We received news of his passing with great sadness. In his remarkable life and career, and with a rare and unusual gift of judgement, Dr. Gregorian identified and supported PASGR’s sense of purpose in its nascent years. As PASGR sought to establish its niche in the African higher education and training landscape, the journey would have been quite lonely, tenuous and relatively obscured without the strong hand of this great benefactor. He embraced and helped to nurture our pursuit for research excellence in the realm of governance and public policy in Africa, and, enabled us to empower researchers, academics, civil society organisations, and policy practitioners to generate research evidence that advances the development discourse in Africa. We are grateful for the many conversations with CCNY, and the brilliant thought provoking ideas and insights that have shaped our programmes and impact. Today, PASGR’s Board of Directors joins hands with staff; graduates and researchers of PASGR’s Methods Institute; students of the Doctoral Programme in Public Policy; and, other stakeholders spread across the African continent and beyond to celebrate Dr. Gregorian’s transformative work and legacy.  During this difficult moment of mourning, our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues. May they find strength and comfort in knowing that Dr. Gregorian’s timeless legacy remains alive and will be celebrated from generation to generation. Rest in Peace VG.