Joaquim Chissano, a former President of Mozambique who led his country to peace after more than a decade of civil war killed a million of his citizens, became the first ever winner of a new £2.4 million ($5m) prize for achievement in Africa today.

Mr Chissano, who was in power between 1986 and 2005, was awarded the Mo Ibrahim award for achievement in London by Kofi Annan, a former United Nations Secretary General.

The former Mozambican President is credited with starting negotiations with the armed rebel movement, the Mozambican National Resistance, to bring an end to the murderous conflict, which had started after the country gained independence from Portugal in 1975. As a result, a peace agreement was struck and a new constitution was developed in 1990, bringing a permanent end to the civil war.

As well as one million deaths, the conflict in Mozambique left 1.7m people displaced. By mid-1995 the refugees - who had sought asylum in Malawi, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Zambia, Tanzania, and South Africa - had returned home as part of the largest repatriation programme ever seen in the region.

Announcing that Mr Chissano had won the award, Mr Annan said that the former President had set an example for young African leaders of the future to follow.

"President Chissano’s achievements in bringing peace, reconciliation, stable democracy and economic progress to his country greatly impressed the committee," Mr Annan said. "So, too, did his decision to step down without seeking the third term the constitution allowed."

The $5 million prize was established by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation which was launched last year to boost governance in Africa. Dr Ibrahim, the founder of the African telecommunications company Celtel International, is one of Africa’s most successful business leaders.

The winner was selected by a committee that assessed every sub-Saharan African leader who has left office in the past three years.

Times Recommends

• Mandela’s tribe threatens President Zuma
• The French empire strikes back
• Wife of cheating governor exacts a political revenge