EL FASHER - The UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, has concluded a five-day visit to Sudan, during which time he met with Government officials, local authorities, community representatives and UNAMID peacekeepers.

High on the agenda was the recent UN Security Council Resolution 2363 and the current reconfiguration of UNAMID.

The Security Council decided recently that the Mission should adopt a two-pronged focus going forward. This involves a peacekeeping focus centered on Jebel Marra, Central Darfur, and areas in the vicinity, and a more peacebuilding approach in other parts of Darfur, with an emphasis on enhancing the rule of law.

The Sudan visit – which took in Khartoum, El Fasher, along with Zalingei and Golo in Central Darfur -- was part of a larger mission also involving Abyei and South Sudan.

In Khartoum, Mr. Lacroix met with Ibrahim Ghandour, the Foreign Minister, where they discussed government support for UNAMID operations. In further meetings, Mr. Lacroix spoke with other Government officials and also briefed African Ambassadors based in the Sudanese capital about implementation modalities related to the UNAMID reconfiguration.

While in Darfur, Mr. Lacroix met with local authorities and community representatives, along with UNAMID leadership and military, police and civilian peacekeepers.

In El Fasher, Mr. Lacroix met the Wali (Governor) of North Darfur, Abdul-Wahid Ibrahim, during which they discussed reconfiguration of the Mission and ongoing cooperation.

Said Mr. Lacroix: “We discussed plans in order to continue the support to the population, particularly the IDP community, and the plan to build capacity in the areas of rule of law to help further improve the security situation.”

Mr. Ibrahim addressed the situation in North Darfur state, and coordination between local authorities and UNAMID.

Mr. Lacroix took up his post on 1 April of this year, replacing Hervé Ladsous. Mr. Lacroix brings to the position over 25 years of political and diplomatic experience, mostly handling multilateral organizations, United Nations activities and programmes.