A dattawan ne na kasa da kasa da ba na gwamnati shiri na jama'a Figures lura a matsayin babban jami'in statesmen, zaman lafiya gwagwarmaya, da kuma yancin yan Adam masu yada, wanda aka kawo tare da Nelson Mandela a shekara ta 2007. Sun bayyana kansu a matsayin "shugabannin duniya masu zaman kansu da ke aiki tare don zaman lafiya da 'yancin ɗan adam". Burin da Mandela ya sanya wa Dattawan shi ne su yi amfani da "kusan shekaru 1,000 na hadin kansu" don aiki kan hanyoyin magance matsalolin da ake ganin ba za a iya shawo kansu ba kamar canjin yanayi, HIV / AIDs, da talauci, tare da "amfani da 'yancinsu na siyasa don taimakawa warware wasu rikice-rikice masu rikice-rikice a duniya ". Zuwa Nuwamba Nuwamba 2018, Dattijan suna ƙarƙashin jagorancin Mary Robinson, kuma sun ƙunshi Dattawa goma sha ɗaya da Dattawa biyar Emeritus. Kofi Annan ya yi aiki a matsayin kujera daga 2013 har zuwa rasuwarsa a 2018; Desmond Tutu yayi shekaru shida a matsayin kujera kafin ya sauka a watan Mayu 2013, kuma ya kasance Dattijo Emeritus.