UNHCR welcomes nomination of new High Commissioner
News Stories, 24 May 2005
© UNHCR/A.Hollmann
Nominated High Commissioner António Guterres will head the Geneva-based UNHCR and oversee 6,000 staff members in 115 countries.
GENEVA, May 24 (UNHCR) – On behalf of the staff of UNHCR, Acting UN High Commissioner for Refugees Wendy Chamberlin on Tuesday welcomed the announcement in New York of the nomination of former Portuguese Prime Minister António Guterres as the UN refugee agency's 10th High Commissioner.
Mr. Guterres' nomination was announced at United Nations headquarters by a spokesman for Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
"Former Prime Minister Guterres is a highly respected international statesman with a wealth of experience that will be of enormous benefit to the world's 17 million refugees and others of concern," Ms. Chamberlin said. "We look forward to carrying on UNHCR's global work under his able leadership."
Mr. Guterres, who was Prime Minister of Portugal from 1996-2002, succeeds former High Commissioner Ruud Lubbers.
UNHCR's 6,000 staff members work in 115 countries worldwide, many of them in remote and difficult duty stations. The refugee agency, which has won two Nobel Peace Prizes, was established by the UN General Assembly in 1950 and has helped more than 50 million people over the past five decades.
António Guterres, who joined UNHCR on June 15, 2005, is the UN refugee agency's 10th High Commissioner.
UNHCR chief meets Malian refugees in Burkina Faso
On 1 August, UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres travelled to northern Burkina Faso with the United States' Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (BRPM), Anne Richard. In Damba camp, they met with Malian refugees who had fled northern Mali in the past six months to escape the ongoing conflict and political instability. To date, more than 250,000 Malian refugees have fled their homes and found refuge in neighbouring countries, including 107,000 in Burkina Faso alone. The UN refugee agency has only received one-third of the US$153 million it needs to provide life-saving assistance such as shelter, water, sanitation, health services, nutrition and protection to the refugees. UNHCR fears that the volatile political and humanitarian situation in Mali could lead to further outflows to neighbouring countries.
UNHCR chief meets Malian refugees in Burkina Faso
Angelina Jolie meets boat people in Malta, Lampedusa
Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie joined UNHCR chief António Guterres on the Italian island of Lampedusa, where they met with boat people who have fled unrest in North Africa.
More than 40,000 people, including refugees and asylum-seekers, have crossed the Mediterranean on overcrowded boats and descended on the small island since the beginning of the year.
The UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador flew to Lampedusa from Malta, which has also been a destination for people fleeing North Africa by boat.
Angelina Jolie meets boat people in Malta, Lampedusa
UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie visits Ecuador
Angelina Jolie, in Ecuador this past weekend, on her first field visit as the new Special Envoy of UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres.
In her previous role as a UN refugee agency Goodwill Ambassador, Jolie has conducted more than 40 field visits over the last decade. This is her third time in Ecuador - home to the largest refugee population in Latin America.
Ecuador currently hosts some 56,000 refugees and 21,000 asylum-seekers. It continues to receive 1,300 new applications for refugee status each month from people fleeing Colombia. Many live in remote and poor areas of the country close to the Colombian border.
UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie visits Ecuador
Lebanon: Guterres urges support
On the first leg of his World Refugee Day visit to the region, the UN High Commissioner calls for support for Lebanon.
Enough
UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres and the heads of four key UN sister organizations call on governments to find a political solution to the Syria crisis.
DR Congo: Central African Republic Refugees
Fighting and a coup since late last year in Central African Republic have forced more than 30,000 people to seek refuge in DR Congo. UNHCR chief António Guterres visited some of them.
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