Valerie Amos to Address Opening Session at InterAction Forum

Valerie Amos, the UN's under-secretary-general and emergency relief coordinator, will address the opening session of Forum 2011 focusing on the shifting landscape for humanitarian action around the world.

Amos is responsible for the oversight of all emergencies requiring United Nations humanitarian assistance. She also acts as the central focal point for governmental, intergovernmental and nongovernmental relief activities and leads the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), a unique inter-agency forum for coordination, policy development and decision-making involving the key United Nations and non-United Nations humanitarian partners.

She has a long-standing commitment to development, particularly on the African continent. As a minister in the British government, Amos worked with colleagues globally to tackle poverty in Africa by increasing aid flows through debt relief initiatives and promoting private-sector investment on the continent. She has been active for over 30 years on the promotion of human rights, social justice and equality on the African continent.

She was the first black woman appointed to a British Cabinet and the first black leader of the House of Lords. In the United Kingdom, she has played a central role in the government’s broader diversity and community-cohesion agenda.

She is currently chair of the Royal African Society, a member of the Fulbright Commission and a fellow at the Centre for Corporate Reputation, University of Oxford.

To hear hear Valerie Amos speak, register for the Forum.