UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday named a major general from Ethiopia to head the UN mission and peacekeeping force for Abyei, a disputed oil-rich region which straddles the border between Sudan and South Sudan.

"The secretary-general has appointed Major General Yohannes Gebremeskel Tesfamariam of Ethiopia as the head of mission and force commander of the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA)," UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said at a daily news briefing here.

"Major General Tesfamariam succeeds Lieutenant General Tadesse Werede Tesfay of Ethiopia, who completed his assignment on 24 January 2013," Nesirky said.

The UNISFA, set up by the UN Security Council in June 2011, is mandated to oversee the demilitarization and maintain security of the Abyei area, and protect civilians and humanitarian workers there.

The final status of Abyei has yet to be determined. It is one of the outstanding issues of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement which helped bring an end to the conflict between Sudan and South Sudan, before the latter's independence in July 2011.

Previously, the secretary-general urged both parties to peacefully work towards resolving the matter, among other unresolved issues.