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Stephen O'Brien appointed new humanitarian chief at the UN

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Former UK international development minister Stephen O'Brien will take over from Valerie Amos as the UN's new humanitarian chief.

Mr O'Brien, who steps down as a Conservative MP at the general election, will bring more than 20 years of experience in international development and health policy to his new role at the UN. 

His previous political and non-governmental roles include Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development (2010-12) and chair of the Malaria Consortium NGO (2006-10). Since 2012 he has been Prime Minister David Cameron’s Envoy and Special Representative for the Sahel. He also currently serves as a Director-Trustee of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.

As a parliamentarian Mr O'Brien has been a strong advocate for the UK meeting the United Nations-endorsed target of spending 0.7 per cent of Gross National Income on overseas aid. Earlier this week, UNA-UK congratulated the UK for becoming the first G7 country to enshrine this commitment in law.

Together with 1 for 7 Billion, UNA-UK campaigned for a transparent, merit-based appointment process to ensure that the body charged with coordinating emergency assistance to victims of disaster and conflict is led by the best possible candidate, irrespective of region or background. 

Mr O'Brien becomes Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs at a critical time for millions of people affected by crises across the world - from Ebola victims and Syrian refugees, to those displaced by terrorist groups like ISIL.

UNA-UK would like to take this opportunity to wish Mr O'Brien every success in this vital role.

Photo: Roll Back Malaria Partnership