UAE diplomat Lana Nusseibeh announced her candidacy for the position of UN Secretary General, after a letter of nomination from UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to the presidents of the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council.
If elected, Nusseibeh, who is a former UAE ambassador to the UN, will be the first woman to hold the high-profile position, and the second Arab to be elected UN Chief, following Egypt's Boutros Boutros-Ghali who served from 1992 to 1996.
The outgoing secretary-general, Antonio Guterres of Portugal, ends his second five-year term on December 31, 2026. Even if a candidate earns the required nine votes from the 15 available in the Security Council, they must also avoid a veto by the five major powers, which are deeply divided. Once a candidate clears those bars, their name will go to the General Assembly of all UN members for confirmation.
Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.
Besides Nusseibeh, four other women are nominated for the role of UN chief so far. Here's a look at the candidates:
Ivonne A-baki (Ecuador)
Ivonne A-Baki was the former ambassador of Ecuador to the US, France and Qatar and her country's Minister of Foreign Trade, Industry, Regional Integration, Fisheries, and Competitiveness from 2003 to 2005.
She holds a Master’s Degrees in Public Administration and Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School, 1993 and a degree in Arts studies at the Sorbonne University in Paris.
A-Baki was advisor to the President of Ecuador during negotiations that led to the 1998 Ecuador–Peru Peace Agreement. She is a seasoned diplomat and peace negotiator with more than 40 years of expertise including conflict resolution, biodiversity and ocean protection, Indigenous partnership, intercultural dialogue, and global economic policy. She is Unesco's Goodwill Ambassador for the Dialogue of Civilizations since 2010.
She was nomitaed by Tonga, as UN rules allow any UN member state to nominate a candidate, not only the candidate’s country of origin.
Ivonne A-baki
María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés (Ecuador)
María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés is an Ecuadorian diplomat who has served twice as the country’s foreign minister and as defence minister. She helped mediate talks between the Colombian government and the ELN rebel group, contributing to a temporary ceasefire, and led Ecuador’s first National Cybersecurity Strategy. She currently serves as president of Cities Alliance and holds several international advisory roles.
Espinosa holds a master’s degree in social sciences and Amazonian studies from FLACSO-Ecuador and a bachelor’s degree in applied linguistics from the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador. In 2025, she received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from The New School University.
She was nomitaed by Antigua and Barbuda.
María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés
Rebeca Grynspan (Costa Rica)
Rebeca Grynspan Mayufis was born in San Jose, Costa Rica in 1955. She holds a degree in Economics from the University of Costa Rica, a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom and Honorary doctorates from the University of Extremadura, the University of Salamanca, and the European University in Madrid.
Rebeca Grynspan served as Vice President of Costa Rica from 1994 to 1998. Prior to this period, she held key cabinet positions as Minister of Housing, Minister Coordinator of Economic and Social Affairs, and Deputy Finance Minister. She has served as the Secretary-General of UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) since 2021, making her the first woman to lead the organisation.
She was nomitaed by her country of origin, Costa Rica.
Rebeca Grynspan Mayufis
Carolyn Rodrigues Birjett (Guyana)
Carolyn Allison Rodrigues-Birkett is a prominent Guyanese diplomat and politician who has served as Guyana's Permanent Representative to the United Nations since 2020. She has spent over 25 years in public service.
Before her UN assignment, she made history as the first woman and the highest-ranking Indigenous person to serve as Guyana's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2008 to 2015, after previously serving as the Minister of Amerindian Affairs. She also held senior international civil servant roles, including managing director-level responsibilities at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Geneva.
She holds a Master's Degree in International Affairs and Diplomacy from the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya and a Degree in Social Work from the University of Guyana.
Carolyn Rodrigues Birjett was born on September 16, 1973. She is a mother of three.
She was nomitaed by her country of origin, Guyana.
Carolyn Rodrigues Birjett