Who will be next Secretary General of UN?
This year, the United Nations will choose its next secretary general. We need the best possible candidate for the job, Mogens Lykketoft, President of the 70th session of the UN General Assembly said. It is often spoken of as the most impossible job in the world. And given the files that the next United Nations secretary general will take over on January 1, 2017, it is easy to see why: appalling conflicts and human suffering in parts of the Middle East, Africa and Europe; violent extremism threatening us all; continued discrimination against women and girls; a worrying rise in xenophobia; over 800 million people struggling to escape extreme poverty; close to 60 million displaced around the world; a unique window of opportunity to address climate change and the Sustainable Development Goals, before it is too late; and an organisation that needs to adapt to the challenges and new goals the world is facing. In its 70-year history, the UN, for all its flaws, has demonstrated that it can rise to such challenges. But to do so today, it must secure the best possible candidate through this year’s process of selecting and appointing the next secretary general. The role of the secretary-general Many have suggested that the UN’s most senior official should either be a secretary or a general. This is too simplistic, for the secretary general must be both and more. A person with strong moral courage and integrity, he or she – and I do not see why the best candidate should not be a woman – must be a voice for the world’s most vulnerable people and embody the very ideals and purposes of the UN. The world’s top diplomat, the secretary general must use independence, impartiality and good offices to prevent conflict, broker peace and stand-up for human rights. A person with political stature and strong leadership skills, the secretary general needs the authority to bring to the attention of the UN Security Council any matter which in his or her opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security. As the chief administrative officer of the UN, the secretary general must create a culture of integrity, fairness, competence and efficiency right across the UN family. This means overseeing an organisation with a budget of approximately US$10 billion, a staff of over 40,000 and 41 peace operations worldwide. The secretary general must be a person with strong inter-personal and communication skills – able to navigate smoothly in our increasingly multi-polar world and drive a global transition to sustainable development. An archaic selection process One might think, therefore, that the process for choosing the secretary general would be as vigorous, inclusive and transparent as possible. But to date this has not been the case. Previously, there has been no clarity on when the selection process actually started or, somewhat unbelievably, who was actually running for the job. Also, there has been no formal job description and no real opportunity for substantive and open engagement with the candidates. The result: recommendations negotiated behind closed doors – primarily by the five permanent members of the Security Council; eight secretaries general, not one of whom has been female; and a mostly symbolic appointment by the UN General Assembly. Therefore, secretaries general have, not always rightfully, been perceived as beholden to the powers they must be most independent of. A better way to choose the next SG The UN Charter is clear on the respective roles of the Security Council and the General Assembly in the selection and appointment process and it must be adhered to. But recent changes to the process itself, agreed to by all 193 members of the General Assembly, provide us with a genuine opportunity to make it more transparent, more robust, more inclusive and, ultimately, more effective. As president of that assembly, it is my job to ensure that those changes are implemented. So here’s what’s happening. Last December, the president of the Security Council and I set the selection process in motion by issuing a call for candidates to be presented as early as possible. We outlined the central features of the process. We pointed out some of the key criteria for the position and, in light of seven decades of male dominance, we encouraged member states to present both female and male candidates. To date, seven candidates have been presented. Their biographies and related information are now publicly available on my website. But perhaps the greatest opportunity to truly break from the past comes in the form of open dialogues that I will hold with the candidates. These dialogues – referred to by some as the “SG hearings” – will begin on April 12. Each candidate is expected to prepare a vision statement on the challenges and opportunities facing the UN and the next secretary general. They will present themselves for two hours of questions from the full UN membership as well as civil society, and each dialogue will be streamed live online. The dialogues will continue with new candidates until the Security Council makes its recommendation. I expect everyone who is serious about becoming the world’s next chief diplomat will engage openly and directly with the full UN membership and the people they will ultimately serve. An opportunity for change Of course, these innovations will not directly transform our world and discussions continue on issues such as the length and renewability of the secretary general’s term, and whether the General Assembly should vote on an appointment or not. But they do have the potential to establish a new standard of transparency and inclusivity. They can increase our chances of securing the best possible candidate to lead the UN. And they represent, I believe, a moment when the General Assembly – the world’s most representative and democratic decision-making body – reasserts itself. Given the global challenges we face today, this could be a real game-changer. So, please, go online, participate on social media, make yourself heard and help us find the best possible candidate for UN secretary general – the candidate that our world needs.
