Secretary-General congratulates Liberia's president-elect

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan welcomed the official results of the Liberian presidential run-off elections announced today and congratulated Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf on her election as Africa's first woman head of state in the modern era.

The National Elections Commission said the results of the 8 November second round showed that former banker and former UN Development Programme (UNDP) senior official Johnson-Sirleaf received 59.4 per cent, while former UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Goodwill Ambassador George Weah of the Congress for Democratic Change got 40.6 per cent of the total valid votes cast.

Mr. Annan noted that under established legal procedures the Commission would continue to conduct active and open hearings on the complaints received on the conduct of the run-off elections and called for "a timely conclusion of this important process" so as to allow all Liberians to focus on the urgent tasks of national reconciliation, reconstruction and good governance.

The Secretary-General assured the newly-elected Government of continued UN support, "as Liberia lays the foundations for lasting political stability and sustainable economic development."

For the past two years a peacekeeping UN mission has assisted the country's transition to peace and democracy after 14 years of vicious civil war.