Securing adequate financial resources and improving the safety of U.N. aid workers are two of the most important tasks to ensure the United Nations can carry out its humanitarian activities, according to the newly appointed chief overseeing such activities.
Career diplomat Kenzo Oshima, 57, will assume the post of U.N. undersecretary general in charge of humanitarian affairs and relief operations in late January.
"The international community will continue to have strong feelings about providing humanitarian assistance, but we need financial backing to continue to provide such aid," Oshima said in a recent interview with The Japan Times. He is currently serving at the Prime Minister's Office as head of Japan's international peacekeeping operations.