1 for 7 Billion has reached at a crucial stage in its work to find the best possible Secretary-General. Seven candidates have already come forward and many of our reforms are being implemented.
The campaign has fought hard and succeeded in opening up a window of opportunity for civil society to interact directly with candidates. Now, we need members of the public and civil society to rise to the challenge and participate.
Submit your questions now
From 12 to 14 April, all UN member states will be invited to interact with candidates in the General Assembly. The sessions will be webcast, and NGOs around the world are encouraged to take part.
The UN’s Non-Governmental Liaison Service (UN-NGLS) has created a new website for NGOs to pose questions to the candidates, and see questions posed by others. There are three ways to submit your questions:
- Fill out an online form
- Tweet using #UNSGcandidates
- Email your question to askSGcandidates@unngls.org
Hurry, questions must be submitted by 20 March!
Once all questions have been received, an NGO selection committee will draw up a shortlist, from which the President of the General Assembly will select questions to be put to candidates.
NGOs can apply to be on the question selection committee here. The deadline for applications is 15 March.
Coming soon...
These meetings are a great development, something 1 for 7 Billion has long campaigned for. However, we are concerned that the UN’s format will not allow sufficient time for meaningful civil society engagement.
For this reason 1 for 7 Billion is also supporting dedicated candidate debates outside the UN, organised by our partners. As these debates are finalised, we will send the details of where and how you can participate.