More than 3,400 people have died of cholera in Haiti since the outbreak started in October. In November, protesters stoned a UN patrol and shouted slogans accusing UN soldiers from Nepal of bringing the disease.

Last month, US researchers reported the cholera strain came from south Asia and mostly closely resembled one circulating in Bangladesh. The United Nations has so far said there is no scientific evidence the Nepalese battalion is responsible and all tests on its troops have proved negative.

But when he announced on December 17 the plan to create an independent panel of inquiry, Ban said, "There remain fair questions and legitimate concerns that demand the best answer that science can provide."

Ban said on January 6, the panel would be chaired by Alejandro Cravioto, who is Mexican but works at the International Center for Diarrhoeal Disease Research in Bangladesh.

The panel will review all information and data available to date and travel to Haiti to conduct investigations on the ground, Ban's spokesman, Martin Nesirky, said in a statement.

It will operate independently of the United Nations, have access to all UN records, reports, facilities, and staff members, and report both to Ban and the Haitian government, Nesirky said.