Valerie Amos to step down
The top UN official for humanitarian aid, Valerie Amos, who oversaw international relief efforts in Syria and other trouble spots, announced Wednesday she is stepping down.
Amos had been in the key post for more than four years, overseeing major aid operations in Syria as well as in South Sudan, Iraq and the Central African Republic.
Her departure comes as the United Nations is struggling to cope with a record 50 million people displaced from conflict.
In a letter to UN staff, Amos said she would be leaving in March after working at "the most challenging, demanding and rewarding job I have ever done" as UN under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator.
She gave no specific reason for her departure but recalled that she was now the longest-serving top UN aid official, one of the most demanding jobs at the United Nations.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expressed gratitude and praised Amos for the extensive experience she brought to the post.
Born in Guyana, Amos has been a lifelong campaigner for human rights.
Amos, who holds the title of baroness, was the first black woman to sit in the British cabinet following her appointment as international development secretary in 2003.
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