UNITED NATIONS, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The UN Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission have appointed Rodolphe Adada of the Republic of Congo as Joint AU-UN Special Representative for Darfur, a UN spokesperson announced Tuesday.

    According to the spokesperson, the Joint AU-UN Special Representative for Darfur will head the AU-UN peacekeeping missionin Darfur in accordance with the High-level Meeting in November last year in Addis Ababa on the situation in Darfur, whose conclusions were subsequently endorsed by the AU Peace and Security Council and the UN Security Council.

    "On behalf of the Secretary-General and the AU Commission Chairperson, the Joint Special Representative will have overall authority over the peacekeeping mission in Darfur, oversee the implementation of its mandate, and be responsible for the mission's management and functioning," the statement said.

    Adada has served since 1997 as Minister for Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Relations with Francophone Countries of the Republic of Congo and has been advisor to President Denis Sassou-Nguesso.¡¡