XUNICEF News and Views

Everyone was excited as we reconnect ourselves through a get-together with UNICEF retirees in Japan. Where have they been hiding? Even cherry blossoms agreed to full blossoming to celebrate the reunion

  Yoshi and Mikiko Uramoto Tom McDermott chatted last week with Yoshi Uramoto about Yoshi's long career in UNICEF and later as Deputy to the Executive Director of UNIDO and then as Regional Director for Asia in ILO.   Yoshi has been a frequent contributor to News and Views, including his article in our June 2021 Quarterly, Off to War by Taxi .  He is also an active participant in our Academics Cluster.  In February this year we publlished a copy of his presentation to Academics Cluster,   2013 Rana Plaza Tragedy in Bangladesh . After retirement Yoshi taught for 7 years at Tokyo's Sofia University.  He continues to be a devoted jogger and tells us that he wants to "keep on running until he is 84." Among other updates, he tells us about how his grand-daughter drew the perfect cover for his book, Inequality and Dream (See our article in April 2021 ).   We are sure that you will enjoy this Quick Chat with Yoshi.  

Starting up in Former Yugoslavia – Zagreb December 1991 “Yoshi, you need to be in Zagreb in 24 hours to start up an emergency operation and open an office”. It was Tom McDermott phoning me in Bombay from Delhi. He didn’t need to persuade me and he didn’t try. It never occurred to him that I would refuse this ‘offer’, even if it came from ‘out of the blue’. Even though Bombay was the first foreign posting for my wife, Mikiko, she bravely let me go and took on the care of my two daughters for the following six months. No doubt, many UNICEF readers have had a similar experience or two. Yoshi in 1991 - then head of UNICEF Bombay I arrived the following day in Graz, Austria via Geneva. Then I took a taxi to Zagreb. It was risky to fly to Zagreb and there was no flight available. A taxi driver, Neno, was at the airport to meet me. Neno later joined UNICEF, as a staff member, became our Supply / Logistics Officer, and nowadays I understand has his own shipping company. At that time, how...