Will the next UN secretary general be a woman?

Mary Robinson, Nicholas Kristof and other global experts share their thoughts on the potential repercussions of a female UN secretary general

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“We can’t use the excuse that there aren’t enough qualified women to choose from,” argues Jean Krasno, a Yale professor and UN expert. TheWoman Secretary General campaign she chairs produced a list of outstanding women from all regions, including the next potential region – Eastern Europe – with Irina Bokova, the head of Unesco, and Kristalina Ivanova Georgieva, economist and EU commissioner at the top of the list. Also on the list are Christine Lagarde, head of the IMF, Michelle Bachelet, the president of Chile and former head of UN Women, and Helen Clark, former prime minister of New Zealand and head of UNDP.

A recent Guardian poll found that 96% of respondents believe it’s time to have a female secretary general..."

Source: http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/jul/09/will-the-next-un-secretary-general-be-a-woman?CMP=new_1194&CMP= 

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Back in 2005 we could read:

The organization Equality Now claimed Saturday the next Secretary General of the United Nations should be a woman, something that has never happened throughout its 60 years of existence, though there are many female candidates qualified for the post.

A press release by the international NGO reads women have very little representation in the UN directive positions.

Up to mid 2005, females held only 37.1 percent of top and professional posts within the UN. Regarding the position as deputy secretary general, the figure barely amounted to 16.2 percent.

“Women´s unequal access to positions of power linked to decision-making worldwide hinders the UN goals, including those for equity, development, and peace,” the group affirms.

Female representation should be taken into consideration when naming the future UN secretary general after Kofi Annan concludes his term this year, it stressed.

The mentioned post generally rotates so that all geographic regions take a turn. “Women have never had a chance and there are many well-prepared candidates in all regions,” the release indicates.

From 1945 to 2006, the United Nations has been led by three representatives from Europe, two from Africa, one from Latin America, and one from Asia, Equality Now highlights.

Sources:

Prensa Latina and the Organization for Defending Victims of Violence (ODVV), a non-governmental organization devoted to promote a non-violence culture.