UN Secretary-General ­Antonio Guterres Wednesday ­appointed a new HIV/AIDS chief ­after the previous incumbent left ­accused of serious mismanagement.

Oxfam International Executive Director Winnie Byanyima of Uganda will lead UNAIDS, a spokesperson for Guterres said in a statement.

She succeeds Michel Sidibe who stepped down in May ­after he was accused of creating "a patriarchal culture tolerating harassment and abuse of authority."

An Independent Expert Panel report commissioned by ­UNAIDS' governing body said the agency's culture under Sidibe also failed "to uphold the United Nations' laws and values."

Sidibe left UNAIDS after a decade-long tenure to become Mali's health minister.

Guterres continued to praise Sidibe despite his being reprimanded for mishandling a sexual assault investigation involving one of his top deputies.

Sidibe's divisive era led AIDS experts to voice concern over the future of the UN body, as UNAIDS leads a global effort to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

AIDS-related illnesses have killed 35 million people since the first cases were reported more than 35 years ago.