Ban Ki-moon dispatching UN political chief to Horn of Africa

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today that he will dispatch the world body’s top political officer to the Horn of Africa to discuss how to bring peace and stabilization to troubled Somalia.

Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs B. Lynn Pascoe will leave later this week for his trip, during which he plans to visit several countries, starting with Kenya. Some details of the itinerary have not yet been finalized.

En route to Africa, Mr. Pascoe will participate in a London meeting on Wednesday of the International Contact Group for Somalia, whose members include Italy, Kenya, Norway, Sweden, Tanzania, the United Kingdom and the United States, together with the AU, European Union (EU), Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), League of Arab States and the UN.

The meeting will also be attended by leaders of the East African country’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG), senior officials of the Group’s member states and the Secretary’s Special Representative for Somalia, François Lonsény Fall.

Mr. Pascoe plans to brief the Security Council on his visit to the region upon his return to New York.

According to UN figures, 340,000 people, or roughly one-third of the Somali capital’s population, fled the hostilities in Mogadishu since February, while at least 1,000 have sustained serious injuries.