Center for Human Rights and Policy Studies (CHRIPS) and Saferworld

Summary

Frames the Secretary-General's prevention role as moral authority, patient mediation, and non-selective application of Charter principles. Bases his vision on direct experience building Security Council consensus on the protection of civilians. Does not propose structural prevention reforms.

Profile

Otunnu views the Secretary-General's soft power as the primary instrument for preventive action. His platform is anchored in moral authority, impartiality, and personal engagement rather than institutional reform.

His position is built on deep institutional familiarity with the UN and recent direct field experience of community-level peacebuilding in post-conflict northern Uganda. Otunnu identifies active conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Iran, the Horn of Africa, and the Sahel as the top priority of any new Secretary-General and commits to personal engagement across all of the disputes and wars. He describes his vision as a “solidarity-based approach, founded on trust in crisis management, combined with sustained efforts for prevention and the strengthening of early warning initiatives and mechanisms.” He does not elaborate what those mechanisms would look like in practice.

His most distinctive prevention credentials relate to his work as the first UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict (1998–2005). In this post, he built the Security Council compliance and monitoring regime for the protection of children in conflict through Resolutions 1261 and 1612, establishing the naming and shaming mechanism and integrating child protection into peace operations. He sees this as the template for the SG role: building Security Council consensus on difficult new agenda items through patient engagement and innovative design.

Otunnu repeatedly states that the norms and principles of the UN Charter and international law must be applied “without any selectivity whatsoever.” He connects this to the SG's legitimacy: the SG's soft power depends on being seen as the impartial custodian of Charter values.

Otunnu’s platform offers less detail on specific prevention architecture proposals, Article 99, early warning system design, transnational organized crime (although acknowledged as important), the WPS agenda as a structural prevention methodology, and prevention financing. His approach is doctrine-focused and experience-grounded rather than institutionally reformist.

Cairo International Center for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping, and Peacebuilding (CCCPA) and International Peace Institute (IPI)

Summary

Otunnu has not addressed peacekeeping or peacebuilding as a candidate. As SRSG for children and armed conflict, he focused on embedding child protection in peacekeeping mandates and peacebuilding programming.

Profile

Otunnu has not addressed peacekeeping or peacebuilding as a candidate. When it comes to peace and security, his vision statement instead focuses on five conflicts he would give immediate priority to ending and the political frameworks he would prioritize in each case.

However, Otunnu has a substantial earlier record. As the first SRSG for Children and Armed Conflict (1997–2005), Otunnu advanced a three-part proposal for peace operations: that the protection and needs of children be firmly entrenched in peacekeeping mandates; that each mission have a senior officer responsible for coordinating child protection and advising the head of mission; and that civilian and military peacekeeping personnel receive training on the rights and protection of children and women. Progress was made on each element during his tenure as SRSG, and by 2003, advisers had been deployed to the missions in Angola, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Sierra Leone. On peacebuilding, Otunnu argued consistently that children’s needs belong at the outset of planning rather than as an afterthought and pressed the point that post-conflict peacebuilding “must not mean a return to the status quo ante, a return to the conditions that gave rise to the conflict in the first place.”

As president of the International Peace Academy—IPI’s predecessor—from 1990-1998, Otunnu wrote extensively on peace operations. He argued that traditional peacekeeping had proved ineffective in civil wars and proposed a new mechanism: a rapid-response capability, mandated under Chapter VII, going beyond peacekeeping but short of full enforcement in scope and duration. He warned against exaggerated expectations of regional partnerships and against the “tribalization of peacekeeping,” in which European conflicts are treated as Europe’s business and African conflicts as Africa’s—a tendency that he argued cuts against the UN’s universality and is undermined by uneven regional capacity. He called for more systematic consultation with troop contributors and called for supplementing assessed peacekeeping contributions with extra-governmental financing sources. These positions date from the mid-1990s, and he has not restated them as a candidate.

ODI Global

Summary

Otunnu prioritizes conflict resolution and emphasizes the protection of women and children in conflict. His campaign has not addressed humanitarian reform.

Profile

Otunnu supports multilateralism and emphasizes the importance of the UN Charter, principles and international law.

While all candidates have said they would emphasize peace and security, Otunnu has discussed the conflicts he would prioritize in more specific terms than any other candidate, asserting that the conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan and Iran must be a priority for the Secretary-General. He has repeatedly emphasized that conflicts that cause widespread suffering of civilians should be treated as priorities.

Otunnu served as UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict from 1998-2005. He emphasizes the need to protect women and children affected by conflict, stating that “one of the most disturbing scenarios today is seeing that in all these conflicts, children, women, innocent people are suffering unbelievably. It's another reason why we cannot be indifferent. We must do everything to try to bring these conflicts to an end, because the toll, the tragedy on innocent people, is unacceptable.”

Beyond prioritizing the protection of civilians and resolution of global conflicts, Otunnu has not commented on humanitarian action or impediments to humanitarian response, nor has he made proposals for improving humanitarian action. While he sees the continuation of UN reform as essential and identifies a need for greater co-operation with regional organizations, Otunnu has not addressed the Humanitarian Reset, humanitarian-specific aspects of UN80 or other humanitarian reform initiatives.

Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD) and Southern Voice

Summary

Otunnu prioritizes SDG implementation, emphasizing domestic responsibility and national ownership, but offering limited detail on financing and post-2030 frameworks. He also supports UN leadership on AI governance.

Profile

Otunnu’s vision for development prioritizes implementation of the SDGs. Drawing on lessons from the MDGs, he has stressed translating global commitments into tangible outcomes at national and community levels. However, he has not proposed specific alternative metrics or a detailed framework for the post-2030 development agenda. He has argued that developing countries should strengthen planning, domestic investment, resource mobilization, and governance, including efforts to combat corruption. At the same time, he has said that the Secretary-General should mobilize additional resources through regional partnerships. Otunnu has framed the Secretary-General’s role primarily as advocacy and diplomatic engagement, using moral authority and soft power to highlight structural imbalances and vulnerabilities, advocate for reform, and support countries that have demonstrated domestic commitment to development.

On climate change, he has advocated practical cooperation and innovation rather than ideological confrontation, emphasizing partnerships among the UN, regional organizations, the private sector, and other stakeholders. Yet has not provided any details concerning climate finance for adaptation and mitigation measures or circumventing the disproportionate burden of loss and damage on climate-vulnerable economies owing to natural disasters. He has similarly identified AI as the most transformational emerging technology, proposing that the UN convene governments, technology companies, and other actors to develop a global framework for responsible AI governance and equitable access to its benefits.

Otunnu strongly supports the right to development, while stressing that development, human rights, and international law must be pursued consistently with the UN Charter and without selectivity. He has acknowledged the needs of small and vulnerable states, including SIDS and landlocked countries, while also acknowledging that middle-income countries should not be overlooked. Overall, his vision for development emphasizes inclusive development, national ownership, international cooperation, institutional reform, and stronger partnerships beyond the UN system.

Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL) and GQUAL Campaign

Summary

Otunnu calls for a Charter-based approach covering “the basics,” emphasizing cultural sensitivity and warning against politicization and selectivity. He supports increased human rights funding, rejects impunity, and commits to promoting gender parity and geographic diversity.

Profile

Otunnu places human rights among the three UN pillars, built on the “bedrock" of the founding pledge expressed in the Charter and requiring continuous substantive work. His approach to human rights would imply a "return to the basics...as postulated in the Charter," which he sees as necessary for broad legitimacy. As such, he warns against “politicization, instrumentalization, and the intrusion of ideology" and calls for "greater sensitivity to different cultural perspectives and social norms" so the UN can better understand “the deep traditions and cultures of human dignity" in different societies. He has also emphasized that respect for international law and human rights should not be selective.

On financing, he has acknowledged that "expenditure on human rights is exceedingly low" and said he would encourage member states to increase funding, provided the system is reformed to protect “the basics.”

Otunnu has not elaborated on reforms to strengthen human rights accountability mechanisms. He has emphasized, however, that the Security Council, the ICC, and all other UN entities with accountability mandates should not accept impunity.

He has not referred in detail to women’s rights or plans for their protection, beyond references to women and children in conflict. Drawing on his tenure as the UN's first Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, he called on the UN to do more “to ensure the implementation of rules and standards which have been adopted for their protection" given that “children and women suffer disproportionately in situations of war."

On parity, he affirmed his belief on equality and gender parity, committing to promoting it “at every opportunity as Secretary-General" and to building a team that "reflects the membership, the cultures, the geography" of the organization.

CIVICUS and Transparency, Accountability and Participation (TAP) Network

Summary

Otunnu proposes moving from the global to the community level to reconnect the UN with the people of the world. He frames youth as perhaps the most important single constituency and emphasizes the protection of women and children in conflict.

Profile

Otunnu has committed to gender equality and gender parity as Secretary-General. He has cited his tenure as UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, which included successful efforts to embed the protection of women and children within the Security Council’s peace and security agenda. He has committed to a senior team reflecting “geography, cultures, and gender,” but has not specified targets, timelines, or mechanisms on how to achieve this ambition. He has tended to frame women and children as disproportionately affected groups in conflict, rather than as distinct peacebuilders. His campaign has so far not explicitly referenced the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) framework.

On youth representation, Otunnu has pointed to the Charter’s reference to “succeeding generations” and said that young people should be “more engaged” in the UN’s work. However, he has not proposed specific structures or pathways for youth representation, nor referenced the Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) agenda. Youth also appeared as one category within his broader “Global to Community” framing, alongside women and communities of faith.

On civil society, Otunnu’s prepared vision statement notably did not mention civil society. When asked how he would ensure that civil society is “meaningfully engaged” in shaping his leadership priorities, particularly amid deteriorating civic space and an under-resourced human rights pillar, his response offered a broad framework rather than specific mechanisms to institutionalize civil society participation. This included reconnecting “the people of the world” to the UN, preventing the organization from becoming an “ivory tower,” and translating global aspirations into impact at the national and community levels. He has pointed to his recent five years leading grassroots reconciliation work in northern Uganda as evidence of his on-the-ground credibility. However, even in response to direct questions he has not addressed measures to strengthen civic space protections.

Plataforma CIPÓ and SHE Changes Climate

Summary

Otunnu frames the Paris Agreement as a historic ambition while recognizing implementation shortfalls. He champions developing countries and proposes rapid assessments and partnerships on finance and technology, while specific detail on climate finance is lacking.

Profile

Otunnu positions “environment and prosperity” as key issues in his “Agenda for Action.” He acknowledges climate change “as one of the greatest challenges of our time” and as a “common threat” to humanity. He emphasizes addressing climate “without sacrificing economic prosperity, technological innovations, and energy security”, as well as approaching it through cooperation, including with technology companies, in a way that avoids ideological clashes.

He frames the Paris Agreement as “a historical convergence on ambition,” while acknowledging that “we are falling short on its implementation.” To close the gap, he proposes mobilizing the UN’s capacity “to provide Member States with rapid assessments on the progress and what practical steps could accelerate action” toward achieving the goals of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement. Any such action, he asserts, “must not deepen burdens on developing countries,” pledging to “prioritize partnerships on finance, technology and capacity building support to countries in their national efforts to address climate change.”

In Otunnu’s view, financing for development is critical for sustainable development. He proposes supporting intergovernmental agreements aimed at “closing the financing gap” and addressing “the development needs of all developing countries,” particularly emphasizing Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States. However, he does not make specific reference to climate finance.

His track record mentions his role as Chairman of the Group of 77 during the Law of the Sea Negotiations in 1980-1981 but does not detail any recent climate-relevant experiences. During his General Assembly Interactive Dialogue, he noted his membership on a Commonwealth commission that conducted one of the first studies on the vulnerability of small island states.

Article 109

Summary

Views reform as Member State-driven. Sees the Secretary-General as a convener. Supports UN80 and seeks it to be a continuous exercise. Commits to creating a special body for AI.

Profile

Otunnu argues that continuous reform should be the DNA of the UN, noting “reform is no longer an option; it is an imperative.” The level of ambition expressed is limited, however. He wants to build on UN80 so that it becomes a “continuous process,” with mandate review a key priority. He wants to establish a new “special body” on artificial intelligence, so that the UN can oversee and facilitate its inclusive development.

Otunnu indicates broad support for improved Security Council representation and the Pact for the Future. He does not go into detail on either, in keeping with his argument that Member States are the UN’s “primary stakeholders” and that the UN’s Secretariat works for them. Reform is therefore to be “member-state driven.”

Otunnu envisions a Secretary-General with a limited role in delivering reform; instead, he would use “soft power” to shepherd change through building consensus. This is a recurring theme: Otunnu argues for facilitating dialogue between the Security Council and the General Assembly to deal with various challenges, such as climate change.

He supports the Sevilla Commitment on financing development and seeks to play a role in coordinating responses for countries facing financial and development challenges. While other candidates have actively called for reforming international financial institutions, Otunnu believes the Secretary-General's role is limited here.

He commits to the non-selective application of the UN Charter but shies from outlining how he would respond to violations. He highlights his support for US-brokered agreements in Gaza and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Otunnu refers to the need to “go back to basics on human rights,” though offers no explanation of what this means.

As Permanent Representative in 1981, Otunnu introduced the straw-poll method used to select the Secretary-General in the Security Council.

Oxfam International

Summary

A seasoned diplomat, Otunnu combines deep UN experience with commitments on reform, prevention, gender parity and development, while leaving questions about how far his transformation agenda would redistribute power, resources and decision-making.

Profile

Otunnu presents his candidacy as an effort to renew multilateralism through UN reform, arguing that “reform is no longer an optional choice” and requires “fundamental changes” to the UN's “culture of work,” including “a transformation, a new culture” within the institution. He places peace and security, human rights and development at the center of the UN's mandate, strongly emphasizing prevention, mediation and the Secretary-General's convening and moral authority.

Gender equality is central to Otunnu’s commitments. He states, “I believe strongly in equality. I believe strongly in gender parity,” and pledges to advance gender parity “at every opportunity as Secretary-General.” This emphasis of parity complements his record of bringing the protection and well-being of women and children into the Security Council's peace and security agenda, demonstrating a commitment that spans both women’s equal participation in decision-making and attention to their rights and protection in conflict and peace processes. He also supports the non-selective application of human rights and greater resources for human rights work.

Otunnu recognizes historical inequalities, noting that “there is some historical imbalance that needs to be corrected,” and supports mobilizing resources for Global South countries, while emphasizing this focus as the Secretary-General's advocacy role. On AI, he argues that “the UN should come in and convene the stakeholders” to develop international governance. He also calls for a UN connected to communities, stating that it “should not be an ivory tower divorced from the people of the world.”

These positions offer important areas of alignment, particularly on multilateral reform, prevention, gender parity, women's protection, human rights and community engagement. However, his agenda provides fewer details on transforming the structures that reproduce inequality—including unequal IFI governance, debt, taxation, care and economic power; and on shifting decision-making power and resources to feminist movements, grassroots organizations and historically marginalized groups.