![[Zambia] James T Morris, Special Envoy for Humanitarian Needs in Southern Africa, on visit to a school in Zambia.](https://assets.thenewhumanitarian.org/s3fs-public/styles/responsive_large_2x/public/images/20061259.jpg.webp?itok=_xNsPTTr "James T Morris, Special Envoy for Humanitarian Needs in Southern Africa")
Outgoing United Nations special envoy for humanitarian needs in southern Africa, James T Morris, will embark on his eighth and final trip to the region on Thursday to urge governments and donors to take decisive action to tackle long-term development issues.
Morris, who will also retire from his position as the executive director of the World Food Programme (WFP) early next year, will visit Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe during his nine-day tour, and is scheduled to meet with various donors and government representatives.
Mike Huggins, a WFP spokesman based in Johannesburg who will accompany the envoy, told IRIN that "the over-arching problem [in the region] is HIV/AIDS and chronic food insecurity, which is compounding poverty."
Outgoing UN Secretary General Kofi Annan appointed Morris to the humanitarian post in July 2002 and since then, according to his UN biography, Morris has raised "awareness of the 'triple threat' of food insecurity, weakened capacity for governance, and the HIV pandemic by creating the platform for humanitarian coordination in the region".
Huggins said the issues Morris would raise on his visit included the provision of clean water, sanitation, healthcare, crop diversification and agricultural reform.
In October this year, WFP warned that a $60 million funding shortfall was forcing food aid cuts to as many as 4.3 million people across southern Africa who remain chronically vulnerable despite this year's reportedly good harvests across the region.
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Morris, who will also retire from his position as the executive director of the World Food Programme (WFP) early next year, will visit Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe during his nine-day tour, and is scheduled to meet with various donors and government representatives.
Mike Huggins, a WFP spokesman based in Johannesburg who will accompany the envoy, told IRIN that "the over-arching problem [in the region] is HIV/AIDS and chronic food insecurity, which is compounding poverty."
Outgoing UN Secretary General Kofi Annan appointed Morris to the humanitarian post in July 2002 and since then, according to his UN biography, Morris has raised "awareness of the 'triple threat' of food insecurity, weakened capacity for governance, and the HIV pandemic by creating the platform for humanitarian coordination in the region".
Huggins said the issues Morris would raise on his visit included the provision of clean water, sanitation, healthcare, crop diversification and agricultural reform.
In October this year, WFP warned that a $60 million funding shortfall was forcing food aid cuts to as many as 4.3 million people across southern Africa who remain chronically vulnerable despite this year's reportedly good harvests across the region.
go/he/oa
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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