Secretary-General of the United Nations

[2] The General Assembly resolution 51/241 in 1997 stated that, in the appointment of "the best candidate", due regard should be given to regional (continental) rotation of the appointee's national origin and to gender equality,[3]: 5  although no woman has yet served as secretary-general.However, the Security Council voted in private and followed the same process as previous selections, leading the president of the General Assembly to complain that it "does not live up to the expectations of the membership and the new standard of openness and transparency".These provisions have been interpreted as providing broad leeway for officeholders to serve a variety of roles as suited to their preferences, skill set, or circumstances.[10] Many of the secretary-general's powers are informal and left open to individual interpretation; some appointees have opted for more activist roles, while others have been more technocratic or administrative.[4] The secretary-general is often reliant upon the use of their "good offices", described as "steps taken publicly and in private, drawing upon his independence, impartiality and integrity, to prevent international disputes from arising, escalating or spreading".
The Secretariat Building is a 154-metre-tall (505 ft) skyscraper and the centerpiece of the Headquarters of the United Nations .
Map showing which nations have had a national serving as secretary-general of the United Nations
President of the United Nations General AssemblyArabicChineseFrenchSpanishRussianEmblem of the United NationsFlag of the United NationsAntónio GuterresUnited Nations SecretariatHis ExcellencyChief administrative officerSecretariatGeneral AssemblyResidenceSutton Place, New York CityUnited Nations HeadquartersNew York Cityinternational territorySecurity CouncilTerm lengthUnited Nations CharterGladwyn JebbTrygve LieDeputy Secretary-GeneralUnited NationsChapter XVUnited Nations Secretary-General selectionSecretariat BuildingHeadquarters of the United Nationspermanent members of the council can vetomiddle powerscareer diplomatsBoutros Boutros-Ghalivetoed1996 selectionterm limit1981 selectionKurt Waldheimpapal conclavestraw pollsin 1950president of the General AssemblyUnited Nations Systembully pulpitDag HammarskjöldArab-Israel conflictJavier Perez de CuellarIran-Iraq WarU ThantCuban Missile CrisisSutton Place, ManhattanAnne MorganUN Regional GroupUnited KingdomWestern European and OthersWorld War IINorwayKorean WarSwedenCongo Crisistroikadied in a plane crashNorthern RhodesiaZambiaJohn F. KennedyNobel Peace PrizeAsia-PacificAnti-Fascist People's Freedom LeagueAlgerian independenceIsraelAustriaThird WorldNazi war crimespresident of AustriaUN War Crimes Commissionwar criminalWehrmachtJavier Pérez de CuéllarLatin American and CaribbeanSalim Ahmed SalimTanzaniaAfricanNon-Aligned MovementKofi AnnanBan Ki-moonSouth KoreaPortugalTimor-Lesteprime minister of PortugalSocialist InternationalUnited Nations High Commissioner for RefugeesHammarskjöldWaldheimPérez de CuéllarBoutros-GhaliGuterresEastern European GroupGRULACAsia-Pacific GroupAfrican GroupUnder-Secretary-General of the United NationsThe New York TimesWayback MachineTraub, JamesFarrar, Straus and GirouxSecretaries-generalLeague of NationsEric DrummondJoseph AvenolSeán LesterLeaders of the League of NationsDeputy Secretary-General of the United NationsUN Secretary General memoirsAmina J. MohammedGeneral Assembly President Dennis FrancisUN SystemCharterPreambleselectionsUnder-Secretary-GeneralPresidentInternational Court of JusticeStatuteElectionsMembersReformVeto powerEconomic and Social CouncilTrusteeship CouncilCulture of PeaceMINURSOUNAIDSUNCITRALUNCTADpeacekeepingOzonActionUNEP/GRID-ArendalUNEP-WCMCUN-HABITATUNICEFUNICRIUNIDIRUNITARUN-OceansUNOSATUNRISDUNU-CRISUNU-OPUN WomenSpecialized agenciesUN TourismUNESCOWorld Bank GroupSecretariat officesand departmentsHeadquartersConference BuildingGeneral Assembly BuildingDepartment of Economic and Social AffairsDepartment of Peace OperationsDepartment of Political and Peacebuilding AffairsDag Hammarskjöld LibraryDepartment for Safety and SecurityDivision for Palestinian RightsOffice at GenevaPalace of NationsOffice at NairobiOffice at ViennaOffice for Disarmament AffairsOffice for Outer Space AffairsOffice for PartnershipsOffice for the Coordination of Humanitarian AffairsOffice of Internal Oversight ServicesOffice of Legal AffairsOffice of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing StatesOffice of Counter-TerrorismOffice of the Secretary-General's Envoy on YouthOffice of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in ConflictOffice of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-GeneralOffice on Sport for Development and PeaceUN organizations by locationMembersand observersSecurity Council Permanent membersPermanent representatives to the UNGeneral Assembly ObserversEuropean UnionHistoryInternational Telegraph UnionUniversal Postal UnionHague Conventions of 1899 and 1907Permanent Court of ArbitrationInternational Office of Public Hygienearchivescovenantorganizationmember statesDeclaration of St James's PalaceAtlantic CharterDeclaration by United NationsMoscow ConferenceTehran ConferenceBretton Woods ConferenceDumbarton Oaks ConferenceYalta ConferenceConference on International OrganizationGenocide ConventionEnlargementmissionstimelinegoverned territoriesUniversal Declaration of Human RightsdraftingHuman Rights DayWorld Heritage ConventionConvention on the Rights of the ChildcommitteeDeclaration on the Rights of Indigenous PeoplesPermanent Forum on Indigenous IssuesIndigenous CaucusSustainable Development GoalsDeclaration on the Rights of PeasantsResolutionsSecurity Council vetoesCyprusLebanonNagorno-KarabakhNorth KoreaPalestineWestern SaharaSecretary-GeneralGeneral Assembly President (2016)Security Council (2016)OutlineAdvisory Committee of Local AuthoritiesArt CollectionSecurity Council muralBlock By BlockBretton Woods systemCelestial Sphere Woodrow Wilson MemorialCCISUAComprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban TreatyCriticismDelivering as OneDrug control treatiesExpulsion from the United NationsEx TemporeFederal Credit UnionHonour FlagFour Nations InitiativeGlobal CompactInternational Covenant on Civil and Political RightsInternational Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear WeaponsInternational Day of PeaceInternational Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the WorldInternational Narcotics Control BoardInternational SchoolInterpretation ServiceLaissez-passerMemorial Cemetery KoreaMilitary Staff CommitteeMillennium DeclarationMillennium SummitModel United NationsOfficial languagesOrganisation for the Prohibition of Chemical WeaponsPostal AdministrationRalph Bunche ParkSDG Publishers CompactStandard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile JusticeStandard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of PrisonersTreaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear WeaponsTreaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear WeaponsUN MandateUN SaccoUN SpecialUNICEF clubUnited Nations DayUnited Nations in popular cultureUnited Nations MedalUnited Nations Prize in the Field of Human RightsUnited Nations RadioUnited Nations television film seriesUniversity for PeaceVienna Declaration and Programme of ActionWIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional KnowledgeWithdrawal from the United NationsWomen in peacekeepingWorld Federation of United Nations Associations