For the first time in history of the United Nations all member states will get a chance to question the candidates for secretary-general, in a move designed to make the usually secret selection process for the world’s top diplomatic post more transparent. The eight hopefuls for one of the world’s most high-profile jobs will also hold town hall meetings with the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

They will each pitch their credentials and then answer questions in a two-hour session. Last year, the General Assembly responded to a demand from many countries that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s successor be chosen in a more open process, unanimously adopting a resolution allowing public hearings on how candidates would respond to global crises and run the UN’s far-flung bureaucracy. FULL REPORT


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