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'Édouard Kodjovi Kodjo', better known as 'Edem Kodjo', (born May 23 1938) is a Togolese politician and diplomat who has twice served as prime minister.
Kodjo was born in Sokodé, Tchouadjo prefecture, Togo. He served as the finance minister from 1973 to 1976 and foreign minister from 1976 to 1978, of Togo in the government of President Gnassingbé Eyadema. He later served as the Secretary-General of the Organization of African Unity from 1978 to 1983."Togo/législatives: l'ex-Premier ministre Kodjo candidat dans son fief", Xinhua (Jeuneafrique.com), August 12, 2007 .
In 1985 he published ''Africa Tomorrow'' in France, which was later translated into English by E.B. Khan and published in the United States in 1987.
In the early 1990s, Kodjo broke with Eyadema and established a new political party, the Togolese Union for Democracy. Along with other opposition leaders, Kodjo pressured Eyadema to hold free and fair elections in 1994. In these elections, other opposition parties took control of the Togolese parliament, but Eyadema invited Kodjo to form a government. This caused a rift between Kodjo and other opposition leaders which still has not healed. Kodjo served as Prime Minister of Togo from April 23 1994 until August 20 1996. He resigned as Eyadema and his party began to take more control of the government.
Following the disputed Togolese presidential election of 2005, which occurred shortly after Eyadema's death, Eyadema's son and successor Faure Gnassingbé named Kodjo, a representative of the moderate opposition, as Prime Minister again on June 8, choosing him instead of a candidate from the radical opposition.^[1]
In an announcement on September 16, 2006, Gnassingbé accepted Kodjo's resignation and named Yawovi Agboyibo as Prime Minister.^[2] On September 25, Gnassingbé appointed Kodjo by decree as Minister of State to the Presidency.^[3]
In the upcoming 2007 parliamentary election, Kodjo is running for a seat in the National Assembly from Avé Prefecture as a candidate of his party, the Patriotic Pan-African Convergence.

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References

1. "President snubs opponents for 'moderate' prime minister", IRIN, June 9, 2005.
2. Ebow Godwin, "Togo's President Names Opposition Party", Associated Press (sfgate.com), September 16, 2006.
3. "Togo : Edem Kodjo coopté ministre d’Etat dans le gouvernement Agboyibo", Infosplusgabon.com, September 26, 2006.