Lead image for UN has a chance to elect its first woman chief after 80 years of male leadership.
Member countries of the United Nations should elect a woman as its secretary general. Election of a woman would reflect her vision to keep inclusion, empowerment and equality at the heart of the UN’s mission, while implementing reforms to ensure the UN is prepared to meet the challenges it faces.
There are four women out of the seven candidates vying to get the job of United Nations (UN) secretary general, and if one of them is elected, she will become the first woman to head the world body that was founded in 1945.
The four women candidates running to take over from outgoing UN chief Antonio Guterres are Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Ecuardo’s Maria Fernanda, Costa Rican Rebeca Grynspan and Guyana’s Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett. The men running for the job are Rafel Grossi of Argentina, Senegal’s Macky Sall and Uganda’s Olara Otunnu.
For eight decades, the UN has been in existence, nine men have served as secretary general, and not a woman has been entrusted to carry the responsibility of the highest office. That goes against the UN's expectations on inclusion, empowerment, and equality. That is why, all eyes are on every phase of the secretary-general race – to see if, for the first time, the UN will elect a woman as the head.
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The UN secretary-general is not only the face of the global organisation but also representative of eight billion people in the world. The UN Charter describes the secretary-general as "chief administrative officer" of the Organisation who shall act in that capacity and perform "such other functions as are entrusted" to them by the Security Council, General Assembly, Economic and Social Council and other United Nations organs.
The challenges facing the UN and the world are plenty, and requires visionary and committed leaders. For example, the next secretary-general must deal with financial pressures at the United Nations, address and harness the power of the private sector and artificial intelligence in the world today.
The late United States Supreme Court judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg once said that “women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”