Clinton to lead UN tsunami relief project

Former US President Bill Clinton is to be the top UN envoy for tsunami relief and reconstruction to ensure that the world doesn’t forget the immense needs of the countries devastated by the disaster, a well-informed UN diplomat said today.

UN spokesman Fred Eckhard refused to confirm the appointment but said “a statement will be released on the subject by my office in the next few hours.”

The UN diplomat said the appointment of Clinton as Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s top envoy for the rehabilitation of tsunami-devastated countries would expand on the former president’s current efforts to raise money in the United States.

Soon after the disaster, President George Bush named Clinton and his father, President George Bush, to head a nationwide private fund-raising effort to help countries devastated by the deadly wall of water that killed more than 157,000 people and displaced millions of others.

The two ex-presidents have been travelling throughout the country raising money and Bush said last week they hope to go to the tsunami-ravaged Indian Ocean region to illustrate the need for continued financial help from Americans to rebuild the area. He didn’t say when.