UNITED NATIONS – United Nations chief Antonio Guterres has appointed former South Carolina Governor David Beasley to run the Rome-based World Food Programme (WFP), at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump has proposed slashing funding for the world body and its agencies.
Beasley will replace another U.S. citizen , Ertharin Cousin, who has been the WFP executive director since 2012. Washington was the top contributor to WFP in 2016 with $2 billion, a third of the agency’s budget.
U.N. picks former South Carolina Governor, David Beasley, to run World Food Programme https://t.co/RXRhqV9WcX @WFP @UN
— Megan Rowling (@meganrowling) March 28, 2017
Trump has proposed an unspecified cut in funding for the United Nations and its agencies. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, like Beasley, is also a former governor of South Carolina.
“Mr. Beasley has a wealth of experience that would greatly benefit WFP, the United Nations and the international community at large,” Guterres wrote in a letter, seen by a new agency, notifying the WFP executive board of the appointment.
Guterres said Beasley, who served as South Carolina governor from 1995 to 1999, was among 23 applications/nominations for the job. The WFP executive board noted his appointment in a letter to Guterres on Tuesday.
MICHELLE NICHOLS
