Mr Kofi Annan was elected by acclamation today to a second five-year term as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations.
With no candidate opposing him, the 189-member UN General Assembly endorsed Mr Annan (63) with affectionate applause and a standing ovation rather than a vote two days after the 15-nation UN Security Council did the same.
"I labor under a constant sense of obligation - to you, the member states of the organization, to all the world's peoples, whom you represent, and in particular to my fellow Africans whom you have honored in my person today," Mr Annan told the assembly after the vote.
His wife Nane, a Swedish artist and lawyer, and his daugher Ama, from a first marriage, were by his side.
The election process, usually held late in the year, this time took place six months before the expiration of Mr Annan's first term on December 31st, with diplomats saying he should have the extra time to get started on his second term.
Despite the myriad problems facing the world body, Mr Annan's popularity was so overwhelming that no candidate opposed him. His two terms, following one five-year term for Mr Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt gives Africa 15 years at the helm. Typically the top job rotates among regions every 10 years.
Envoys from around the world after the vote praised Mr Annan as a staunch defender of human rights, a reformer, a crusader against AIDS and a campaigner for the world's poorest.
"His efforts to preserve international peace and security, to ensure sustainable development ,to protect the environment, to promote human rights and social justice in a safer world, deserve the highest marks of the international community," said Ambassador Mr Hussein Zivalj of Bosnia.
"In Secretary-General Annan we have the personification of the international community, a global citizen who gives voice to all the people of our United Nations," said Ambassador Mr James Cunningham of the United States.
Mr Annan said he had sought during his first four and a half years in office to speak out in defense of those who cannot speak for themselves, for the right of the poorest to development, and the right of the weakest and most vulnerable to protection.
"And I have sought to make universal human rights the touchstone of my work, in all their aspects, because I believe they belong to every faith, every culture and every people."
"Whether or how far I have succeeded in these things is not for me to judge. I do know, however, that the task is far from done," he said.