Annan hails Clinton's tsunami relief effort

United Nations, Nov 16 (UNI) UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has praised former US president Bill Clinton for making a ''profound difference'' to millions of survivors of the deadly 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

Mr Clinton is expected to step down as Mr Annan's Special Envoy for Tsunami Recovery by the end of the year, but yesterday he presided over the fifth meeting of the Global Consortium at the UN Children Fund's (UNICEF) House in New York.

''Mr President, I know I speak for all in thanking you for your dedication and commitment to the recovery and rehabilitation effort.

You have made a profound difference to the well-being of millions of tsunami survivors,'' Mr Annan said in a statement read out by UNICEF Executive Director Anne Veneman, at the final meeting of the international consortium set up to deal with the ravages of the deadly 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

The Global Consortium for Tsunami Recovery includes representatives from the United Nations, global financial organisations, and a wide range of other agencies and governments such as Thailand, Indonesia, the Maldives, Sri Lanka and India -- the countries worst affected by the December 26, 2004, disaster.

''You have sought to downplay your achievements. But let me trumpet my envoy's contributions: you have led, inspired, goaded, cajoled, and -- when necessary -- pushed all of us to do what we had to, and so much more,'' Mr Annan added.

Yesterday's meeting reviewed progress made in recovery and rehabilitation efforts over the past two years, including replacing livelihoods and building local government capacity, and also looked for renewed commitments, as well as identifying key lessons learned and strategies aimed at reducing the risk from disasters.

The devastating tsunami killed at least 230,000 people and affected more than 12 countries in Asia and, despite much progress in reconstruction, Mr Clinton warned at the fourth meeting of the Global Consortium in April that major challenges remain.

''There is substantial progress to report in areas like home and school construction and a welcome rebound in tourist arrivals but we still face formidable challenges, from addressing the housing needs of displaced people, to increasing timber supplies without endangering forests, to addressing the remaining 100 million dollars funding gap in the Maldives,'' Mr Clinton said.

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