Three women vying to become UN's first female secretary-general

Three of the five candidates to become the next United Nations secretary-general, all women from Latin America, having taken part in a debate in Geneva.

They set out their plans to reform the world body which is facing a lack of funding, multiple conflicts, and dwindling faith in multilateralism.

Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan, and Ecuador’s Maria Fernanda Espinosa are all hoping to succeed Antonio Guterres, who steps down at the end of the year.

The event was arranged by independent organisations in the city which is home to the UN’s European headquarters.

Bachelet, a former president of Chile’s former and ex UN human rights chief, addressed rumours of a possible United States veto because of her support for abortion rights.

“If somebody vetoes me because I believe in democracy, because I believe in multilateralism, because I believe in women's rights, and because I believe in human rights, I mean, I would be honoured,” she said.

All three touted their diplomatic credentials as they hope to become the first female head of the global body.

While many countries are calling for a female leader, Latin America is claiming the position based on a tradition of geographical rotation -- which is not always strictly followed.

Maria Fernanda Espinosa, who was Ecuador’s foreign minister from 2017 to 2018 said she has worked “through the UN, sometimes in spite of the UN, for 30 years”.

“I was ambassador here in Geneva. I was ambassador in New York. I was president of the General Assembly. I was foreign minister twice. I was minister of defence,” she said.

“So believe me, I understand the UN. But I'm not captured by the UN. I respect very much the staff of the UN. But I can make the transformations the organisation needs.”

Each of the three women acknowledged the need to reduce UN bureaucracy, a criticism frequently levelled at the institution.

Grynspan, a former vice-president of Costa Rica and head of the UN trade and development agency UNCTAD, said she was running "because I think I am the best person for the job".

"I am not a voluntarist. I am a strategist. And I think that the financial crisis is linked to the political crisis that we are going through. So you need to tackle both of them,” she said.

The economist said she knows numbers and budgets and that she “can take the UN out of the financial crisis".

The two other declared candidates - Argentina's Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency; and the former president of Senegal, Macky Sall -  did not attend the debate.

The UN General Assembly can only elect the secretary-general after a recommendation from the Security Council, where the five permanent members - Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States - wield veto power.

Security Council deliberations are expected to begin in late July, before a General Assembly vote in the following months.