United Nations Radio

2010 will be a crucial year for Sudan, according to the outgoing special envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for Sudan, Ashraf Qazi.

Ashraf Qazi

In his farewell speech in Khartoum on Sunday, Mr. Qazi commended the country on recent developments in the electoral process and the implementation of the 2005 peace agreement, which ended the civil war between north and south Sudan.

However, he acknowledged that many challenges lie ahead and warned against a reversal of the recent positive trend.

Mr. Qazi, who is leaving Sudan for personal and family reasons, will be replaced by Haile Menkerios.

Bissera Kostova, United Nations.

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