[July 29, 2011] UN chief appoints special envoy for Sudan, South Sudan Tweet UNITED NATIONS, Jul 29, 2011 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Friday appointed Haile Menkerios from South Africa as his special envoy for Sudan and South Sudan. "Mr. Menkerios served as special representative and head of the United Nations Mission in Sudan since March 1, 2010, and will, in his new capacity, continue to assist the parties reach a negotiated settlement to residual Comprehensive Peace Agreement ( CPA) and post-secession issues," said a statement released by Ban' s spokesperson. Joining the United Nations in 2002, Menkerios brings with him extensive experience in African issues and was appointed by the UN secretary-general as assistant secretary-general for political affairs on July 1, 2007. During his tenure, he facilitated the Nairobi Communique between the governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda regarding the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and other illegal armed groups in eastern DRC, and has been actively engaged in preventive diplomacy in Africa representing the secretary-general, said the statement. Prior to this, Menkerios served as deputy special representative of the secretary-general for the DRC from 2005 to 2007. From 2003 to 2005, he served as the director of the Africa I Division of the Department of Political Affairs. In 2002, Menkerios served as senior adviser to the special envoy of the secretary-general to the Inter-Congolese Dialogue and assisted the special envoy on all aspects of the mediation process prior to the signing of the Global and All Inclusive Agreement on Dec. 17, 2002 in Sun City, South Africa. Menkerios represented the Eritrean Government from 1991 to 2000 in various capacities, including as ambassador to Ethiopia and the Organization of African Unity, special envoy to Somalia and also the Great Lakes region, and as permanent representative to the United Nations. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]