UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced Wednesday that United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) chief Ann M. Veneman will step down as executive director when her term is set to expire in early 2010.

In a statement issued by his press office, the secretary-general said, "It is with great regret that I learned that Ann M. Veneman does not plan to pursue a second term as the executive director of UNICEF."

"She has fulfilled her mandate with immense dedication, and I have been impressed by her extraordinary energy and determination to improve children's health, education and well-being around the world," said the statement.

Appointed by the UN secretary-general, the executive director works on behalf of the United Nations children's agency to protect children all around the globe survive by advocating and ensuring their basic rights.

Under Veneman's leadership, Ban said that UNICEF has become "a catalyst for global action to help children reach their full potential, promoting collaborations that deliver the best possible results for children based on expert knowledge, sound evidence and data."

"She has been a champion of UN Coherence and a strong voice for children as well as MDG (Millennium Development Goals) implementation," the statement said.

Commending Veneman on her work and thanking her on behalf of the UN, Ban said "her legacy is an organization that is financially and intellectually strong and well-equipped to meet the challenges children face in the 21st century."

Prior to UNICEF, Veneman served as secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in addition to serving various other roles there including, deputy secretary, deputy undersecretary for International Affairs and Commodity Programs, and associate administer of the Foreign Agricultural Service.

(Xinhua News Agency December 24, 2009)