CL 116/INF/15
|
Council
Hundred and Sixteenth
Session
|
ARRANGEMENTS FOR APPOINTING
THE
DIRECTOR-GENERAL
|
I. INTRODUCTION
1. In accordance with Rule XXV.7(b) of the General Rules of the Organization (GRO), by
letter of 14 May 1999, the Permanent Representations of Australia, Canada, Germany, the
United Kingdom and the United States of America requested that an item entitled
"Arrangements for Appointing the Director-General" be inserted in the
provisional agenda of the 116th Session of the Council scheduled to begin on 14
June 1999. The letter also stated that the countries concerned "will be in touch
separately about papers."
2. By letter dated 31 May 1999 and received on 1 June 1999, the Permanent
Representation of the United Kingdom requested that the Secretariat prepare for Council a
paper rehearsing the history of the arrangements for appointing the Director-General of
the FAO and summarizing the arrangements applicable to heads of other UN system agencies.
3. This paper responds to and was prepared following the receipt of the request of the
Permanent Representation of the United Kingdom. Any inconvenience to members arising from
the late dissemination of the paper is regretted. The delay was unavoidable in view of the
date of the request for the preparation of the paper and the considerable research
required.
II. CURRENT PROVISIONS IN FAO
4. The appointment of the Director-General is governed by Article VII (1) and (2) of
the Constitution and Rules XII and XXXVI.1 (GRO).
Relevant Constitutional Provisions
5. At present, the relevant paragraphs of Article VII of the Constitution provide:
"1. There shall be a Director-General of the Organization who shall be
appointed by the Conference for a term of six years. He shall be eligible for
reappointment.
2. The appointment of the Director-General under this Article shall be made by such
procedures and on such terms as the Conference may determine.
...."
General Rules of the Organization Relating to Appointment
6. The relevant paragraphs of Rule XXXVI (GRO) provide:
"1. In pursuance of paragraph 1 of Article VII of the Constitution, the
Director-General of the Organization shall be appointed under the following conditions:
(a) When the term of office of the Director-General is due to expire, the
appointment of a new Director-General shall be placed on the agenda of the regular session
of the Conference immediately preceding the expiry of the term of office; whenever, for
other reasons, the office of the Director-General is vacant, or notice is received of a
pending vacancy, the appointment of a new Director-General shall be placed on the agenda
of the next session of the Conference which opens not less than 90 days from the
occurrence or notice of the pending vacancy. Nominations validly made in accordance with
Rule XII.5 of these Rules shall be communicated to the Secretary-General of the Conference
and Council by the date set by the Council. The Secretary-General shall circulate these
nominations to all Member Nations and Associate Members by the date likewise set by the
Council, it being understood that in the case of an election taking place at a regular
session of the Conference, such date set by the Council shall be not later than 30 days
before the session of the Council provided for in Rule XXV.2(c) of these Rules. As soon as
possible after the opening of the Conference session, the General Committee shall
determine and announce the date of the election, it being understood that the appointment
of the Director-General at a regular session shall begin and be effected within three
working days following the opening date of such session.
(b) The Director-General shall be elected by a majority of votes cast. Until a
candidate obtains the required majority, the following procedure shall apply:
(i) two ballots shall be held among all candidates;
(ii) the candidate having received the smallest number of votes in the second ballot
shall be eliminated;
(iii) thereafter, successive ballots shall be held, and the candidate having
received the smallest number of votes in any one of these ballots shall be eliminated,
until only three candidates remain;
(iv) two ballots shall be held among the three remaining candidates;
(v) the candidate having received the smallest number of votes during the second
ballot referred to in subparagraph (iv) above shall be eliminated;
(vi) a subsequent ballot, or successive ballots if necessary, shall be held among
the two remaining candidates until one candidate obtains the required majority;
(vii) in the event of a tie between two or more candidates having received the
smallest number of votes in one of the ballots referred to in subparagraphs (ii) or (iii)
above, a separate ballot or, if necessary, separate ballots shall be held among such
candidates, and the candidate having received the smallest number of votes in such ballot
or ballots shall be eliminated;
(viii) in the event of a tie between two candidates having received the smallest
number of votes in the second of the two ballots referred to in subparagraph (iv) above,
or if all three candidates have received the same number of votes in that ballot,
successive ballots shall be held among all three candidates until one candidate has
received the smallest number of votes, after which the procedure provided in subparagraph
(vi) above shall apply."
7. Rule XII.9 (GRO) provides that the "appointment of the . . .
Director-General . . .shall be decided by secret ballot. ..."
General Rules of the Organization Relating to Nomination of the candidates for
the post of Director-General
8. The nomination of candidates for the post of Director-General is governed, like
other nominations, by Rule XII.5 (GRO) which reads as follows:
"Except as otherwise provided in the Constitution or these Rules, the
nomination of any candidate for an election place to be filled by the Conference or
Council shall be made by the government of a Member Nation or by its delegate or
representative. Subject to the procedure for nomination provided in the Rules, the
appointing body shall determine the nomination procedure."
III. HISTORY OF THE PROVISIONS IN FAO
Article VII of the Constitution
9. The original version of Article VII of the Constitution, which was in force until
1961, did not specify the term of office of the Director-General but merely provided that
he should be appointed by the Conference "on such terms as it may determine".
Each Resolution of the Conference appointing the Director-General also fixed the duration
of his term of office. There was no restriction concerning re-eligibility. In practice
appointments were normally for two years until 1953 and for four years after that date.
10. In 1961, the Conference amended, by Resolution 22/61, Article VII to provide that
the Director-General would hold office for a term of four years, subject to reapointment
for a two-year term. It further provided that, following this two-year term, the
Director-General could be reappointed for another two-year term, "after which he
shall not be eligible for reappointment." The amendment further provided that "[t]he
Constitution, as amended above, shall come into force with the appointment of a
Director-General other than the present incumbent."
11. In 1971, Article VII was again amended, by Resolution 12/71, to provide for a
six-year term for the Director-General without the possibility of reappointment. The
Resolution provided, however, that the provisions of Article VII, as amended, were to
apply to the appointment of any Director-General other than the present incumbent, who was
to be eligible for reappointment for a single term of four years.
12. In 1977, by Resolution 17/77, Article VII.1 of the Constitution was amended to
provide that the incumbent Director-General should be eligible for reappointment. No
change was made to the length of the term, i.e., six years. There was, on this occasion,
no reservation regarding the application of the revised provisions of Article VII.1 to the
then incumbent.
General Rules of the Organization Related to Appointment and Nomination
Rule XXXVI (GRO)
13. The original version of Rule XXXVI (GRO) provided for nominations for the post of
Director-General to be made by the General Committee to the plenary session of the
Conference. the provision read as follows:
"1. In pursuance of Article VII, paragraph 1, of the Constitution, the
Director-General of the Organization shall be appointed under the following conditions:
(a) Whenever the office of Director-General is vacant, or notice is received of a
pending vacancy, the appointment of a new Director-General shall be placed on the agenda
of the next session of the Conference which opens not less than 90 days from the
occurrence or notice of the pending vacancy. Before, however, the appointment is
considered in a plenary meeting, the General Committee shall submit a nomination (or
nominations).
...."
14. At its Ninth Session in 1957, the Conference eliminated the language providing for
nomination(s) to be made by the General Committee. Instead, it provided that "[n]ominations
validly made in accordance with Rule XII-5 of these Rules shall be communicated to the
Secretary-General by the date set by the Council," who, in turn, was required to
circulate these nominations to all Member Governments and Associate Members. The General
Committee was required to set and announce the date of the election.
15. At the Fifteenth Session of the Conference, 1969, sub-paragraph (a) was again
amended to require any election taking place at a regular session of the Conference to be
set not later than 30 days before the session of the Council provided in Rule XXV-2(c)
(GRO). The amended sub-paragraph (a) further required that the appointment of the
Director-General at a regular session be effected within three working days following the
opening of the session.
16. Additionally, a new sub-paragraph (b) was inserted after sub-paragraph (a)
specifying in detail the voting procedures for the election of the Director-General as
follows:
"(b) The Director-General shall be elected by a majority of votes cast. Until a
candidate obtains the required majority, the following procedure shall apply:
(i) Two ballots shall be held among all candidates;
(ii) The candidate having received the smallest number of votes in the second ballot
shall be eliminated;
(iii) Thereafter, successive ballots shall be held, and the candidate having
received the smallest number of votes in any one of these ballots shall be eliminated,
until only three candidates remain;
(iv) Two ballots shall be held among the three remaining candidates;
(v) The candidate having received the smallest number of votes during the second
ballot referred to in sub-paragraph (iv) above shall be eliminated;
(vi) A subsequent ballot, or successive ballots if necessary, shall be held among
the two remaining candidates until one candidate obtains the required majority;
(vii) In the event of a tie between two or more candidates having received the
smallest number of votes in one of the ballots referred to in sub-paragraphs (ii) or (iii)
above, a separate ballot or, if necessary, separate ballots shall be held among such
candidates, and the candidate having received the smallest number of votes in such ballot
or ballots shall be eliminated;
(viii) In the event of a tie between two candidates having received the smallest
number of votes in the second of the two ballots referred to in sub-paragraph (iv) above,
or if all three candidates have received the same number of votes in that ballot,
successive ballots shall be held among all three candidates until one candidate has
received the smallest number of votes, after which the procedure in sub-paragraph (vi)
above shall apply."
Rule XII.5 (GRO)
17. The current Rule XII.5 (GRO) requiring nominations for all elective posts to be
made by Governments, was added at the Ninth Session of the Conference, 1957.
Rule XII.9 (GRO)
18. The current Rule XII.9 was added by the Conference in 1957. Initially, a secret
vote was taken on "decisions relating to individuals" if so decided by the
Chairman of the Conference or when so requested by at least five delegates. In 1950, the
Conference modified the relevant provision, requiring a secret ballot in all elections.
IV. OTHER UN SYSTEM AGENCIES
19. The arrangements applicable to the election of the Executive Heads of other UN
system agencies are summarized in APPENDIX A hereto.
APPENDIX A
PRACTICE IN OTHER UN SYSTEM AGENCIES
UNITED NATIONS
- The selection of a candidate to the post of Secretary-General of the United Nations is
governed by Article 97 of the Charter of the United Nations ("the
Charter"),1 Rule 48 of the Provisional Rules of
Procedure of the Security Council2 and Rule 141
of the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly.3
- No written provisions exist concerning the submission of candidatures. The practice
confirms, however, that both self-named candidates and candidates nominated by Members of
the United Nations are considered. In practice, the candidates to the post of
Secretary-General have always been nationals of countries other than the five permanent
members of the Security Council.
- The Charter remains silent on the term of appointment of the Secretary-General. In 1946,
however, the General Assembly adopted during its first session a resolution4 concerning the terms of appointment of the
Secretary-General resolving that "[t]he first Secretary-General shall be appointed
for five years, the appointment being open at the end of that period for a further
five-year term." The said resolution adds that "the General Assembly and the
Security Council are free to modify the term of office of future Secretaries-General in
the light of experience."
- In accordance with Articles 18 and 27 of the Charter, the nomination of the
Secretary-General by the Security Council requires the affirmative vote of nine members (a
special majority), including the concurring votes of the five permanent members.
- Upon nomination by the Security Council, the appointment of the Secretary-General by the
General Assembly requires only a simple majority of the members present and voting, unless
the General Assembly decides that a two-thirds majority is needed. The same rules apply to
a renewal of appointment of the Secretary-General.
- In 1996, in the absence of a pre-determined procedure for the nomination of a candidate
to the post of Secretary-General, the President of the Security Council established a
precedent by setting guidelines for facilitating and structuring the selection process.
These guidelines covered the entire process from the submission of candidatures to the
decision of the Security Council. It was specifically underlined that while the decision
of the Security Council should be adopted by vote, efforts should be exerted towards
reaching a decision by consensus. All Members of the United Nations were entitled to
submit a candidate or candidates, regardless of their nationality, together with a brief curriculum
vitae. Candidatures were to be submitted to the President of the Security Council.
Straw polls would be conducted using a list of names of candidates drawn up by the
President of the Security Council. Further rounds of straw polls, if necessary, would be
conducted on the basis of the existing list or an updated list drawn by the President,
which could include new names. This process could be repeated in order to reach a decision
by consensus, as long as it did not "unduly delay the decision-making process.
According to the guidelines, the agreement reached by the Security Council on a candidate
for the post of Secretary-General should be formalized in a private meeting. In addition,
the guidelines provided for possible consultations between the President of the Security
Council and the President of the General Assembly when necessary.
SPECIALIZED AGENCIES
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank)
The selection of the President is governed by Article V(5) of the Articles of Agreement
of the World Bank, which provides that the President shall be selected by the Executive
Directors and shall cease to hold office when the Executive Directors so decide. The
Articles of Agreement do not specify either the length of the term or the number of terms
that may be held.
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
- The appointment of the Secretary General is governed by Articles 54(h), 58 and 59 of the
Convention on International Civil Aviation.
- Ten months prior to the termination of an incumbent Secretary General's term of office,
the Council informs ICAO Member States that it will appoint a Secretary General and
invites nominations by a specified date. The Council then appoints the Secretary General
from the nominations received and the incumbent, if he/she stands for reappointment.
- The term of office may be from three to five years. The Council's practice has been to
appoint the Secretary General for three-year terms. There is no limit on the number of
terms for which the position may be held.
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
- The appointment of the President of IFAD is governed by the Agreement Establishing the
International Fund for Agricultural Development, the Rules of Procedure of the Governing
Council and the By-laws for the Conduct of the Business of IFAD.
- Section 6 of the By-laws for the Conduct of the Business of IFAD provides that when the
term of office of the President is due to expire, the appointment of a President shall be
placed on the agenda of the annual session of the Governing Council immediately preceding
the expiry of the term of office.
- Nominations for the office of President may be submitted to the Secretary of the Fund by
Members, along with a curriculum vitae. Such nominations must be submitted no less
than 60 days before the opening of the session at which the appointment of the President
is to be decided. The President must then communicate the nominations to all Members and
to the Bureau no less than 40 days prior to the session of the Council.
- The President of IFAD is appointed by the Governing Council by a two-thirds majority of
the total number of votes cast. Where there is more than one candidate and no candidate
receives the required number of votes on the first ballot, successive ballots are held in
which the candidate receiving the smallest number of votes is eliminated each time, until
such time that one candidate receives at least two-thirds of the total number of votes or
the Council decides that such balloting be discontinued and a decision be taken on another
date.
- The term of appointment is four years, after which the incumbent shall be eligible for
re-appointment for one further term only.5 The
appointment of the President may, however, be terminated by the Governing Council by a
two-thirds majority of the total number of votes.
International Labour Organisation (ILO)
- The nomination and appointment of the Director General is governed by the Rules
Governing the Appointment of the Director General of the ILO (adopted by ILO's Governing
Body on June 23, 1988), and Article 4.6 of the ILO Staff Regulations.
- The Director General of ILO is appointed by the Governing Body of the ILO. According to
the applicable rules, candidatures for the post of Director General must be sent to the
Chairman of the Governing Body at the latest one month prior to the date set by the
Governing Body for the election. The candidatures must be submitted by a Member State of
the Organization or by a Member of the Governing Body. Candidatures submitted in
accordance with these conditions must be communicated to the Members of the Governing Body
by the Chairman upon their receipt.
- The rules provide that a candidate is elected only if he or she receives the votes of
more than one-half of the Members of the Governing Body entitled to vote. For this
purpose, as many ballots shall be held as are necessary to determine which of the
candidates has obtained the majority required. After each ballot the candidate who has
obtained the lowest number of votes is eliminated. If two or more candidates obtain
simultaneously the lowest number of votes, they are eliminated together.
- If in the ballot between the remaining candidates they receive the same number of votes
and a further ballot still does not produce a majority for one of them, or if one
candidate remains but does not obtain the majority required in a further ballot in which
his or her name is submitted to the Governing Body for a final vote, the Governing Body
may postpone the election and set a new deadline for the submission of candidatures.
- The term of appointment is five years, renewable for such further period or periods as
the Governing Body of ILO may decide. No single renewal, however, shall exceed five years.
International Monetary Fund (IMF)
- The selection of the Managing Director is governed by Article XII, Section 4(a) of the
Articles of Agreement of the IMF, which provides that the Managing Director of the IMF is
selected by the Executive Board and shall cease to hold office when the Executive Board so
decides. The Articles of Agreement do not specify either the length of the term or the
number of terms that may be held.
- Formally, the decision of the Executive Board may be taken by a majority of the votes
cast (calculated by weighted voting); in practice, such decisions are taken by consensus.
The Executive Board decision is preceded by broad informal consultations among the Fund's
Governors, other relevant ministers, central bank governors, officials of member
countries, and Executive Directors, which conclude with the selection of one name that is
then presented to the Executive Board for approval.
- Following the selection of the Managing Director, a committee of Executive Directors is
designated to discuss a contract of service with him. The salary and terms of his contract
of service, including the length of his term of office, are determined by the Board of
Governors pursuant to Section 14(c) of the Fund's By-Laws. The same By-Law provision
stipulates that the contract of the Managing Director shall be for a term of five years
and may be renewed for the same term or for a shorter term at the discretion of the
Executive Board, provided that no person shall be initially appointed to the post of
Managing Director after he has reached his sixty-fifth birthday and that no Managing
Director shall hold such post beyond his seventieth birthday.
International Maritime Organization (IMO)
- The appointment of the Secretary-General of the IMO is governed by Article 22 of the IMO
Convention and Rule 52 of the Council Rules of Procedure.
- The Secretary-General is appointed by the Council with the approval of the Assembly.
Rule 52 provides that, with respect to the appointment of the Secretary General, "the
Council shall consider in private meeting its recommendations to the Assembly and vote
upon it by secret ballot."
- Article 22 of the IMO Convention provides that the Council shall determine the terms and
conditions of service of the Secretary-General, "which terms and conditions shall
conform as far as possible with those of the United Nations and its specialized
agencies." No specific reference is made to the length of term to be served by
the Secretary-General or any limitations to the number of terms that may be served. As a
matter of practice, the present Secretary-General was offered a term of four years that
could be renewed. The contract of the present Secretary-General has been renewed twice for
a period of four years each.
International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
- The nomination and appointment of the Secretary-General is governed by Articles 8 and 9
of the ITU Constitution, Article 2 of the ITU Convention and by the procedures adopted by
the Plenipotentiary Conference for this purpose at each session.
- The Secretary-General of ITU is appointed by the Plenipotentiary Conference of ITU.
Candidatures are presented by the Member States and election procedures are established by
each Plenipotentiary Conference. The election procedures adopted in 1994 by the
Plenipotentiary Conference for the purpose of electing a Secretary-General provided for
the conduct of secret ballots, during which any candidate obtaining a majority of votes
would be elected. This majority should be more than half of the delegations present and
voting.
- However, if after three ballots, no candidate has obtained a majority, a fourth ballot
shall be conducted in which the two candidates having the largest number of votes at the
third ballot shall be voted upon. If there is a tie between several candidates so that the
two candidates to be voted upon at the fourth ballot cannot be selected, up to two
additional ballots may be conducted to distinguish between the candidates in question. If
there is a tie in the additional ballots, the Chairman shall draw lots to determine the
candidate or candidates to be selected among those obtaining the same number of votes. If
after the fourth and last ballot, there is a tie, the Chairman shall draw lots to
determine the candidate who shall be declared elected.
- The practice is a four-year term, after which the incumbent shall be eligible for
re-election once only.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
- The nomination and appointment of the Director General are governed by the Constitution
of UNESCO, the Rules of Procedure of the Executive Board and the Rules of Procedure of the
General Conference.
- The Director General is nominated by the Executive Board and appointed by the General
Conference. At least six months before the expiry of the term of office of the Director
General, the Executive Board must invite Member States to suggest, confidentially, the
names of persons who might be considered for the post of Director General and, at the same
time, to provide full biographical details of such persons.
- The Executive Board then considers, in a private meeting, all the names suggested,
together with any proposed by Members of the Board. The Executive Board nominates a
candidate to the post of Director General by secret ballot and sends its recommendation,
together with a draft contract establishing the terms of appointment, salary, allowances
and status, to the General Conference.
- The General Conference considers the Executive Board's nomination and the draft contract
in a private meeting and decides by secret ballot. Should the General Conference fail to
elect the candidate proposed by the Executive Board, the Executive Board must submit
another name within forty-eight hours.
- The term of appointment is six years. The Director General may be appointed for a
further term of six years, but shall not be eligible for re-appointment for a subsequent
term.
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
- The nomination and appointment of the Director General is governed by Articles 11.2 and
9.4(f) of the UNIDO Constitution, Rules 103 and 104 of the Rules of Procedure of the
General Conference, and Rule 61 of the Rules of Procedure of the Industrial Development
Board (IDB).
- The Director General of UNIDO is appointed by the General Conference upon the
recommendation of the IDB.
- When the term of office of the Director General is due to expire, the appointment of a
new Director General is placed on the agenda of the regular session of the General
Conference immediately preceding the expiry of the term of office.
- A candidate for the post of Director General is nominated in writing by his/her
government to the President of the IDB. Nominations of candidates must be received by the
President of the Board at the latest two months prior to the opening date of the last
regular session of the IDB before the session of the General Conference which is to
appoint the Director General. The President must then request the secretariat to circulate
such candidatures to all Members without delay. A candidature may be withdrawn at any
stage by the candidate or by the nominating government.
- The consideration by the IDB of the nominations shall be in private meetings. All
decisions as to candidates are taken by secret ballot. A first series of ballots, not
exceeding the number of candidates, is taken among all the candidates. If any candidate
receives a two-thirds majority of the votes of all Members of the Board, that candidate is
recommended to the General Conference. The Rules of Procedure of the IDB provide for a
second, third and fourth series of ballots. If no candidate is recommended after a fourth
series of ballots, additional candidates may then be nominated, and the balloting process
repeated.
- The term of appointment is four years. The incumbent may be re-appointed for a further
term of four years, after which he/she shall not be eligible for re-appointment.
Universal Postal Union (UPU)
- The election of the Director-General of the International Bureau of the UPU (its
secretariat) is governed by Article 109 of the General Regulations of the UPU.
- The Director-General is elected by the UPU Congress. At least seven months before the
opening of Congress, the Director-General of the International Bureau is required to send
a memorandum to the Governments of member countries inviting them to submit their
applications, if any, for the post of Director-General, also indicating whether the
incumbent is interested in renewal of the initial term. The applications must reach the
International Bureau at least two months before the opening of Congress. The election of
the Director-General then takes place by secret ballot.
- The Director-General is elected for the period between two successive Congresses, the
minimum duration of the term being five years. The term of office is renewable only once.
World Health Organization (WHO)
- The nomination and appointment of the Director General is governed by the WHO
Constitution, the Rules of Procedure of the Executive Board and the Rules of Procedure of
the World Health Assembly.
- The Director General of WHO is nominated by the Executive Board and appointed by the
World Health Assembly, which decides by secret ballot.
- In 1996, the Executive Board of WHO established an ad hoc working group to make
recommendations on nominations and terms of office of the Director General. On the basis
of the proposals made by the working group, amendments to the Rules of Procedure of the
World Health Assembly and the Rules of Procedure of the Executive Board were adopted by
the World Health Assembly and by the Executive Board respectively, to reflect the
following:
- Candidates for the post of Director-General have to fulfill the following criteria
established by the WHO Executive Board:6
"(i) a strong technical and public health background and extensive experience
in international health;
(ii) competency in organizational management;
(iii) sensitiveness to cultural, social and political differences;
(iv) a strong commitment to the work of WHO;
(v) the good physical condition required of all staff members of the Organization;
and
(vi) sufficient skill in at least one of the official working languages of the Executive
Board and Health Assembly."
- In respect of the nomination process, Rule 52 of the recently-adopted Rules of Procedure
of the Executive Board provides the following:
"At least six months before the date fixed for the opening of a session of the
Board at which a Director General is to be nominated, the Director General shall inform
Member States and members of the Board that they may propose persons for nomination by the
Board for the post of Director General.
Any Member State or member of the Board may propose for the post of Director General
one or more persons, submitting with the proposal the curriculum vitae or other supporting
information for each person. Such proposals shall be sent under confidential sealed cover
to the Chairman of the Executive Board [...], so as to reach the headquarters of the
Organization not less than two months before the date fixed for the opening of the
session.
The Chairman of the Board shall open the proposals received sufficiently in advance
of the meeting so as to enable all proposals, curricula vitae and supporting information
to be translated, duplicated and dispatched under confidential cover to members of the
Board one month before the date fixed for the opening of the session.
If no proposals have been received in time for distribution to members in accordance
with this Rule, and in this event only, the Board shall itself establish a list of
candidates in alphabetical order composed of the names proposed in secret by the members
present and entitled to vote.
All members of the Board shall have the opportunity to participate in an initial
screening of all candidatures in order to eliminate those candidates not meeting the
criteria set by the Board.
The Board shall decide, by a mechanism to be determined by it, on a short list of
candidates. This short list shall be drawn up at the commencement of its session, and the
selected candidates shall be interviewed by the Board meeting as a whole at the end of the
second week of the session.
The interviews shall consist of a presentation by each selected candidate in
addition to answers to questions from members of the Board. If necessary, the Board may
extend the session in order to hold the interviews and make its selection.
The Board shall fix a date for the private meeting at which it shall elect a person
by secret ballot from amongst the candidates on the short list.
For this purpose each member of the Board shall write on his ballot paper the name
of a single candidate chosen from the short list. If no candidate obtains the majority
required, the candidate who obtains the least number of votes shall be eliminated at each
ballot. If the number of candidates is reduced to two and if there is a tie between these
two candidates after three further ballots, the procedure shall be resumed on the basis of
the short list originally established at the commencement of the balloting.
The name of the person so nominated shall be announced at a public meeting of the
Board and submitted to the Health Assembly."
- The term of appointment is five years, renewable once.
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
- The nomination and appointment of the Director General of WIPO are governed by the WIPO
Convention and the Procedures for the Nomination and Appointment of Directors General of
WIPO.
- The appointment of the Director General of WIPO involves a two-stage procedure.
Initially, the WIPO Coordination Committee is responsible for nominating one candidate for
appointment to the post of Director General. The Coordination Committee is required to
request candidatures from Member States. Once the number of candidates has been reduced to
two through formal voting, the candidate is then selected by a final vote. All voting is
by secret ballot. The Coordination Committee then communicates the name of the candidate
to the Chairman of the General Assembly.
- The second stagee of the procedure is the appointment by the WIPO General Assembly of
the Director General. The appointment of a candidate requires a majoirty of two-thirds of
the votes cast in the General Assembly, as well as in the Assemblies of the Paris and
Berne Unions.
- The term of appointment is six years. The incumbent may be re-appointed for one
addditional six-year term.
World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
- The nomination and appointment of the Secretary-General is governed by Article 21(a) of
the WMO Convention and Regulations 195 to 197 of the WMO General Regulations.
- The Secretary-General of WMO is appointed by the WMO Congress "on such terms as
the Congress may approve."
- When more than two candidates are to be considered by the WMO Congress for the post of
Secretary-General, the following procedure7 is
followed:
"(a) Each principal delegate, or his alternate, of the Members represented in
the Congress shall be asked to indicate the candidate he prefers by writing the
candidate's name on the voting slip. All candidates who fail to receive a vote and the
candidate who receives the smallest number of votes shall be struck from the list of
candidates. In the event of two or more candidates receiving the smallest number of votes,
a separate vote of preference shall be taken and the candidate who receives the least
number of votes shall be eliminated from the list and the other(s) retained. If in this
separate vote of preference more than one candidate receives the smallest number of votes,
all these candidates shall be eliminated from the list;
(b) The procedures described in paragraph (a) shall then be repeated with the
reduced list of candidates;
(c) This procedure shall continue until one candidate (the "preferred
candidate") remains on the list;
(d) A proposal shall then be submitted to Congress that the preferred candidate be
declared appointed. Such a proposal shall be supported by a two-thirds majority of the
votes cast for and against in order to be adopted;
(e) If, at any stage during the voting procedure described in paragraphs (a) to (c)
above, a candidate receives a two-thirds majority of the votes cast for and against, he
shall be declared appointed and no further votes shall be taken;
(f) In the event of the two final candidates in the indication-of-preference
procedure receiving the same number of votes, a further vote shall take place;
(g) In the event that the proposal described in paragraph (d) is not supported by a
two-thirds majority of the votes cast for and against, a further vote shall take place;
(h) In the event of the further votes described in paragraphs (f) and (g) being
indecisive, Congress shall decide whether further voting shall take place, whether a new
procedure shall be followed, or whether its decision shall be withheld."
- The term of office is four years. A new regulation was recently added to the General
Regulations of the WMO, which provides that "[a] Secretary-General may serve for a
maximum of three four-year terms. This regulation will take effect from [the] fourteenth
congress and will apply to any candidate who may have previously served in the post."
RELATED AGENCIES OF THE UN SYSTEM
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
- The appointment of the Director General is governed by Article of VII of the Statute of
the IAEA and procedures adopted, and subsequently revised, by the Board of Governors in
1997.
- The Director General is appointed by the Board of Governors with the approval of the
General Conference. The revised procedures provide that an item entitled "the
appointment of the Director General" is placed on the agenda for the meeting(s) of
the Board of Governors immediately following the regular General Conference session for
the year before the expiration of the term of office of the Director General. The Board
then notifies governments of all Member States
that nominations from Member State governments will be accepted up to a specified date.
Once received, all nominations are circulated to the Member States.
- Following circulation of the nominations, the Chairman of the Board initiates informal
consultations with a view to forming a concensus on a candidate at the Board's next June
session at the latest. The Chairman reports the outcome of these informal consultations to
the Board no later than the Board's March session. The Board may arrange for candidates to
address it at an open meeting after the closing date for receipt of nominations. With a
view to facilitating a concensus, the Board may conduct informal "straw
polls"during the consultations.
- If a consensus is not reached, a two-stage balloting procedure is used. In the Selection
Stage, in a closed session, Board members vote, in a series of rounds, for their preferred
candidates. If a candidate receives two-thirds of the votes, the Board moves on to the
appointment stage. If no candidate is able to receive the required number of votes, the
Board invites Member State governments to nominate a new slate of candidates. Once any
candidate receives the support of two-thirds of the Board, the Board initiates the
Appointment Stage through an open session. The Board initially proposes the candidate for
appointment by acclamation, i.e., without ballot. If, however, a further ballot is
desired, the Board, through a secret ballot, again votes. Once a candidate is either
appointed by acclamation or after receiving two-thirds of the votes, the appointment is
then submitted to the General Conference for approval.
- The Director General is appointed for a term of four years. There is no restriction on
the number of terms that can be served.
1 Article 97 of the Charter of the United
Nations provides that "[t]he Secretary-General shall be appointed by the General
Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council."
2 Rule 48 provides that "[a]ny
recommendation to the General Assembly regarding the appointment of the Secretary-General
shall be discussed and decided at a private meeting."
3 Rule 141 provides that "[w]hen the
Security Council has submitted its recommendation on the appointment of the
Secretary-General, the General Assembly shall consider the recommendation and vote upon by
secret ballot in private meeting."
4 See Chapter XII.1, "Resolutions
Adopted on the Reports of the Fifth Committee," Resolutions Adopted by the General
Assembly During the First Part of its First Session from 10 January to 14 February 1946.
5 The Governing Council may, however,
under special circumstances, and on the recommendation of the Executive Board, extend the
term of office of the President, but for no more than six months beyond the prescribed
four-year term. (See Article 6, Section 8 of The Agreement Establishing the International
Fund for Agricultural Development).
6 See Executive Board Resolutions and
Decisions, EB97.R10.
7 Regulation 196 of the WMO General
Regulations.