Harry Potter star Emma Watson has talked of her excitement of being appointed a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations.

The 24-year-old tweeted to her 13 million followers: "So excited to start work with the AMAZING people at UN Women!"

"Going to be working for the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and The Empowerment of Women (!!!)."

Watson, who recently appeared in Noah and The Bling Ring, also changed her Twitter background image to the UN Women’s logo.

The agency first announced the appointment and said shortly afterwards that its website had crashed due to the number of visitors to the site.

Propelled to stardom by her role as Hermione Granger alongside Daniel Radcliffe’s Harry Potter, Watson recently graduated from Brown University in the United States.

She hopes to “make a real difference” in her new UN role, and has previously promoted girls’ education, and visited both Zambia and Bangladesh.

"Women’s rights are something so inextricably linked with who I am, so deeply personal and rooted in my life that I can’t imagine an opportunity more exciting," she said

"I still have so much to learn, but as I progress I hope to bring more of my individual knowledge, experience and awareness to this role."

UN Women Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka added: “We are thrilled and honoured to work with Emma, whom we believe embodies the values of UN Women.”

"The engagement of young people is critical for the advancement of gender equality in the 21st century, and I am convinced that Emma’s intellect and passion will enable UN Women’s messages to reach the hearts and minds of young people globally."

Source: Press Release