1 for 8 Billion is at the UN to follow the interactive dialogues with Secretary-General candidates, where they are facing questions from member states and civil society. Here are our key takeaways from each session:
Ms Bachelet spoke strongly in defense of human rights as integral to peace and security and to development, and framed climate change as humanity's greatest threat.
Ms Bachelet emphasized the importance of maintaining the UN’s field presence in the face of broader budget cuts, repeatedly highlighting the Resident Coordinator system, and the need to protect resources for humanitarian response and prevention.
When asked by Norway, on behalf of the Accountability, Coherence, and Transparency Group, whether she would pledge to uphold 1 for 8 Billion’s Principles for Integrity in UN Secretary-General Campaigns, Ms Bachelet said she would go further than that and uphold the Principles not only in her campaign but in her tenure as SG.
When asked by 1 for 8 Billion what steps she would take to end national monopolies by powerful countries on top UN jobs, Ms Bachelet referred to her experience as President of Chile taking on politically charged personnel reforms: “I’m not afraid of doing that. I’ve done it in the past and I will do it… because it’s necessary in the UN. That’s my conviction and my commitment.”
Mr Grossi emphasized the need for the Secretary-General to play a more active role on peace and security, including by showing up in person to conflict zones. He highlighted his experience engaging on security crises through his current role as Director General of the IAEA.
On reform, Mr Grossi commented that the UN is not working and that young people in particular do not have faith in the organization. He emphasized that reform does not require more conferences or reviews, but rather moving on to implementation, and that better communication was needed to restore trust in the UN.
Jordan on behalf of the Accountability, Coherence, and Transparency Group asked about ensuring independence from member states, as well as merit, gender, and geographic balance, in the allocation of senior UN jobs. In response, Mr Grossi discussed the importance of geographic representation but did not address independence from member states directly.
When asked by Estonia whether he would be willing to publish more detailed and updated financial disclosures, Mr Grossi said that he is paying for all campaign expenses from his own private funds, and so has nothing further to report.
Stay tuned for our in-depth analysis of each candidates' policy positions on core UN issues from our expert NGO partners.
Illustrations by Bruna Barretto