Guterres tops long list of UN job seekers in 2021

Secretary-general is the most high-profile leadership position to open up at the United Nations this year — but it is not the only one. After weeks of speculation, spokesman Stéphane Dujarric confirmed to reporters Monday that U.N. chief António Guterres is “a candidate” for reelection in the fall. “The secretary-general conveyed to [the president of the General Assembly] today that he is available to serve a second term as secretary-general of the United Nations, if that would be the will of the member states,” Dujarric said. That followed a Bloomberg report that Guterres had told the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council on Sunday that he would like to be renewed for another five years. The 71-year-old former prime minister of Portugal took office in January 2017 and was thought to have been awaiting the outcome of November’s U.S. presidential election before announcing a decision. The United Nations’ relationship with the U.S. deteriorated under President Donald Trump’s administration, creating political headaches for Guterres and also costing the institution nearly $2 billion in unpaid dues. Silke Weinlich, a senior researcher specializing in U.N. issues at the German Development Institute, told Devex by phone Monday that this year’s secretary-general election should strive to offer greater transparency — something campaigners sought to improve in 2016. That year marked the first time the election process for the U.N. leader played out publicly, with candidates conducting formal campaigns, and not just behind closed doors. Despite recurrent calls for a woman to lead the U.N., Weinlich predicted that Guterres would likely prevail as a second-term candidate. Even so, Weinlich said: “He should also speak out in the General Assembly and present what he wants to achieve, etc. Maybe it would be good to have a race and to have a selection of this very important post.” Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee and Michelle Bachelet, U.N. high commissioner for human rights, have been floated as potential prospects for secretary-general, but no other candidates have formally announced their intentions to run. Countries typically nominate candidates for the job. Additional institutional shuffling Other leaders’ terms are ending at a host of United Nations organizations this year, including the U.N. Development Programme, the U.N. Industrial Development Organization, the International Civil Aviation Organization, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development, UNESCO, and the U.N. Population Fund. UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner’s four-year term ends in June 2021. Asked whether he would seek another term, a UNDP spokesperson told Devex: “Several former UNDP Administrators have served more than four years. The decision rests with the UN Secretary-General who, after consultation with Member States, submits the decision on appointment or extension for approval to the UN General Assembly.” Next steps for Mark Lowcock, the head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs since September 2017, were also unclear, with an OCHA spokesperson declining to say when his current term ends. “We do not provide details on individual staff contracts but we note that the standard term for an Under-Secretary-General-level appointment is up to five years,” the OCHA spokesperson told Devex by email. “Those terms can be extended at the discretion of the Secretary-General.” Guterres’ spokesperson Dujarric did not respond to a request for comment on Lowcock’s term. Director General Li Yong’s second four-year term at UNIDO is coming to an end, with his successor to be announced at the organization’s general conference in November. ICAO Secretary-General Fang Liu’s second and final term ends in August. Replacement candidates will be reviewed by the ICAO Council in February and elected in time to take over from Liu, though a spokesperson did not provide a specific date for the election. At IFAD, no candidates have been nominated to face incumbent President Gilbert F. Houngbo, who is expected to be reappointed for a second — and final — four-year term on Feb. 17. UNCTAD Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi, from Kenya, will end his second and final term in August. A UNCTAD spokesperson said Kituyi’s successor should be from Latin America, as his predecessor was from Asia. A description of the post will be posted “soon” on the website of the U.N. secretary-general, who will propose a candidate to the General Assembly. Zurab Pololikashvili, secretary-general of the World Tourism Organization, is seeking the backing of the body’s executive council for a second term at a meeting later this month. UNESCO incumbent Director-General Audrey Azoulay told an executive board meeting in December that she will seek another term as part of a process culminating in November 2021. UNFPA did not immediately respond to request for comment. In the coming years, Weinlich said that President-elect Joe Biden’s administration will also have the opportunity to choose leaders for the two historically U.S.-led organizations: UNICEF and the World Food Programme. Both UNICEF’s Henrietta Fore, whose term ends Dec. 31, 2022, and WFP’s David Beasley, whose term will run out in April 2022, were nominated by the outgoing Trump administration. However, after WFP’s Nobel Prize win in 2020, “I don’t know if Biden dares to take it [the leadership position] away from Beasley,” Weinlich said. “There are many people who say [Beasley’s] done a really good job,” she said. “He managed to keep the U.S. engaged, which has not been easy over the past four years.” Update, Jan. 12: This article was updated to clarify the timeline for the upcoming UNIDO appointment.