Ban names senior official for UN offices in South Sudan, Central African Republic - Shanghai Daily (subscription)

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Source: XINHUA  |   2012-12-12  |     ONLINE EDITION

UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed senior UN officials for the UN offices in South Sudan and the Central African Republic, UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said here Tuesday.

"The secretary-general has appointed Major General Delali Johnson Sakyi of Ghana as the Force Commander for the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS)," Nesirky said at a daily news briefing here.

Major General Sakyi succeeds Major General Moses Bisong Obi of Nigeria, who completed his assignment on Nov. 18, the spokesman said.

On July 9, 2011, South Sudan became the newest country in the world. The birth of the Republic of South Sudan is the culmination of a six-year peace process which began with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005.

In a resolution adopted on July 8, 2011, the UN Security Council determined that the situation faced by South Sudan continued to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region. The Security Council established the UNMISS for an initial period of one year, starting from July 9, 2011.

On July 5, the Security Council unanimously decided to extend the mandate of the UNMISS for another year.

Meanwhile, the spokesman said, "The secretary-general has also appointed Kaarina Immonen of Finland as his Deputy Special Representative in the Central African Republic."

Immonen will also serve as the United Nations Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator, the spokesman said, adding that she succeeds Bo Schack of Denmark.