Secretary-General Kofi Annan today appointed
a new United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Iraq, to replace Hans
von Sponeck of Germany, who recently resigned.
The new Coordinator, Tun Myat of Myanmar,
is expected to come on board at the start of April, according to the Spokesman
for the Secretary-General, Fred Eckhard. A long-serving United Nations
staff member with more than 20 years of experience, Mr. Myat is currently
an official of the World Food Programme.
The Humanitarian Coordinator's work forms part of the operations of the UN Office of the Iraq Programme, established in 1997 to consolidate the management of UN activities related to Security Council resolutions on Iraq. Mr. Myat, serving at the Assistant Secretary-General level, will report to the Executive Director of the Office of the Iraq Programme, Benon Sevan.
Today, that Office released its weekly update. Last week, Iraq exported 12.1 million barrels of oil for revenue of some $294 million, and two new contracts for the sale of oil were approved. Humanitarian supplies and equipment for the oil industry were continuing to arrive, including more than 13 tonnes of wheat, as well as cooking oil, detergents, medicines and classroom furniture.
Since the inception of the "oil-for-food programme" in December 1996, more than ten million tonnes of foodstuffs, worth more than $4.4 billion, and some $830 million of medicines and health supplies have been delivered, according to the Office of the Iraq Programme.