UN World Food Program head won't seek new term

FILE - In this Aug. 19, 2015 file photo, the executive director of the U.N. World Food Program, Ertharin Cousin, speaks during a news conference in Cairo. The WFP said on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017, that Cousin won't seek a new five-year term at the U.N. food assistance agency. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Aug. 10, 2015 file photo, World Food Program executive director Ertharin Cousin holds a Syrian refugee child while meeting with Syrian refugees in Amman, Jordan. The WFP said on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017, that Cousin won't seek a new five-year term at the U.N. food assistance agency. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh, File) (The Associated Press)

GENEVA – World Food Program head Ertharin Cousin says she won't seek a new five-year term.

WFP spokeswoman Bettina Luescher told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday that Ertharin Cousin has informed staffers at the U.N. food assistance agency and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of her decision.

Cousin's term expires on April 6.

Luescher said that the American didn't specify her reasons for not seeking a new term, but had indicated "she does it with a great deal of emotion, but without an ounce of regret."

The agency's website says that the WFP is the world's largest humanitarian organization with about 13,500 staffers serving more than 90 million people in 80 countries.

Luescher said that the WFP is now coping with its highest-ever number of crises.