Among the names being floated for the top job are two Bulgarians – UNESCO chief Irina Bokova (pictured) and EU budget commissioner Kristalina Georgieva – along with Croatia’s Foreign Minister Vesna Pesic/AFP
A draft resolution is due to be put to a vote at the UN General Assembly next week that would for the first time allow the 193-nation to see the resumes of potential candidates and hear their views.
For decades, the choice of the UN chief has been the purview of the five permanent Security Council members, in a selection process kept mostly behind closed doors.
Ban was chosen by the Security Council which forwarded his name to the General Assembly for endorsement.
The draft resolution requests that the Security Council and the General Assembly start looking for candidates now by sending a letter to all 193 nations inviting applications and explaining the selection process.
Interested candidates must have “proven leadership and managerial abilities, extensive experience in international relations, and strong diplomatic, communication and multilingual skills,” the text said.
The names of candidates for the post would be circulated to the assembly along with full resumes, according to the draft that was finalised late Wednesday.
In a first, the General Assembly would conduct hearings or meetings with potential candidates to ask about their vision for leading the world body.
The draft resolution will be put to a vote on September 11.
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