UN secretary-general appoints Xia Huang envoy for region in Africa

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced Tuesday the appointment of Xia Huang of China as his special envoy for Africa’s Great Lakes Region, succeeding Said Djinnit of Algeria.

The Great Lakes Region was derived from the freshwater lakes and river basins within the central and eastern part of Africa. The area covers countries located in the east and central Africa – namely Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Republic of Congo, Central African Republic (CAR), South Sudan, Kenya, and Sudan.

The Great Lakes Region constitutes a complex network of political and economic interactions with implications for peace, security, and governance.

The UN has long been engaged in efforts to bring peace and stability to the Great Lakes region, “which has been plagued by decades of political instability and armed conflicts, porous borders, and humanitarian crises, as well as tensions over natural resources and other potentially destabilizing factors”, according to its website.

Born in 1962, Xia brings more than 30 years of diplomatic experience across the world, with experience in Africa, having served in several high-level positions. He was the ambassador of China to Niger (2009-2012), Senegal (2012-2015) and the Republic of Congo (2015-2018).

Most recently, he has served as the ambassador at large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China.

In earlier postings, he served in the Chinese embassy to Gabon, in the Chinese embassy to France, and as deputy mayor of the government of Jiamusi, Heilongjiang province, in China.

Xia is the first Chinese special envoy of the secretary-general.