UNITED NATIONS, Nov 26 (APP) : The process to elect the next secretary-general of the United Nations formally began Tuesday as member states were invited to nominate candidates to take over the role from January 1, 2027.
In a joint letter from Sierra Leone Ambassador and current Security Council President, Michael Imran Kanu, and General Assembly President, Annalena Baerbock, sought nominations, marking the start of the race to replace Antonio Guterres as the world body’s chief administrator.
“Our choice will send a powerful message about who we are as a United Nations and whether we truly serve all the people of the world,” Ms. Baerbock, president of the 193-member Assembly, told reporters on Tuesday.
The selection process is set to last several months and could see many rounds of votes from the Security Council before the body’s 15 members approve a candidate to send to the General Assembly for a final vote from all member states.
“The position of Secretary-General is one of great importance and one that requires the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity and a firm commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,” the joint letter said.
Several member states are calling for a woman to be selected, and in its letter UN leadership noted “with regret that no woman has ever held the position of Secretary-General” and called on members “to strongly consider nominating women.”
Some candidates for the post have already announced their intention to run, including former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, the Argentinian International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Grossi, and Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan, who is currently leading the UN agency for trade and development (UNCTAD).
Candidates must be presented by a state or group of states, and submit a vision statement and list funding sources.
There is a tradition of geographical rotation, which would make it Latin America’s turn this time around, but it’s not always followed. The letter notes “the importance of regional diversity” without specifying a required area.
Candidates may undergo public interviews, a transparency procedure first used during the 2016 selection that let to Guterres’ first term.
Security council members will begin the formal selection process by the end of July, and the five permanent members with veto power — United States, China, Russia, United Kingdom and France — hold the candidate’s future in their hands.
Guterres, the current and ninth secretary-general of the UN, took office in January 2017.