UNITED NATIONS, May 16 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has appointed Carolyn McAskie of Canada as the world body's assistant secretary-general for peacebuilding support, a UN spokesman said Tuesday.

    McAskie will be in charge of providing support for the newly created UN Peacebuilding Commission, which aims to help post-conflict countries avoid sliding back into war.

    McAskie served most recently as the senior UN envoy to Burundi and head of the UN peacekeeping operation there. She served as Annan's envoy for the humanitarian crisis in Cote d'Ivoire in 2003.

    From 1999 to 2004, she was the UN's deputy emergency relief coordinator, serving on a temporary basis as emergency relief coordinator from 1999 to January 2001.

    Prior to joining the United Nations, McAskie had a 30-year career with the Canadian government in the Canadian International Development Agency, holding senior positions with responsibility for Africa and the Middle East, among a number of other appointments. Enditem