Zimbabwe : Kofi Annan to lead Elders delegation to Zim

Bulawayo - Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan will next week lead a three-member delegation of the Elders Group of Eminent Persons to Zimbabwe to assess the African country's escalating humanitarian crisis.

In a statement on Friday, Mr Annan said the delegation, which would include former United States President Jimmy Carter and international advocate for women and children's rights Graca Machel, will make a first-hand assessment of how to respond more effectively to Zimbabwe's crisis and prevent its spill-over effects on neighbouring countries.

Mr Annan emphasised the mission was purely humanitarian and would not be involved in current efforts to set up a government of national unity in Zimbabwe between President Robert Mugabe and opposition Movement for Democratic Change leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara.

"Relieving the suffering of millions of people must be the priority of Zimbabwe's leaders," said Mr Annan in the statement. "But global attention is also slipping as Zimbabwe 's humanitarian crisis worsens."

The Elders are a group of globally respected leaders committed to offering their collective experience and independent voices to support the resolution of conflict, to seek new approaches to easing human suffering across the world.

Other members of the Elders Group include: Ela Bhatt, Lakhdar Brahimi, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Mary Robinson, Desmond Tutu and Muhammad Yunus while Aung San Suu Kyi is an honorary Elder.

According to Mr Annan, his delegation will visit Zimbabwe from 22 to 23 November before proceeding to South Africa.

The former UN chief said: "We hope that our visit will also add momentum to the global response to longer-term issues of reform and development once an inclusive government is in place and operational.

"The delegation will not be involved in the current political negotiations. However, we urge Zimbabwe 's political leaders to move swiftly to fully implement the 15 September agreement, particularly the provisions on humanitarian and food assistance."

Zimbabweans had hoped that a power-sharing government would help ease the political situation and allow the country to focus on tackling an economic crisis marked by the world's highest inflation rate of 231 million percent, severe shortages of food and basic commodities.

However, the country's power-sharing agreement deadlocked after the failure of the leaders to compromise on the allocation of key cabinet ministries. - BuaNews-NNN