• by Thalif Deen (united nations)
• Tuesday, May 19, 2009
• Inter Press Service

The 130-member Group of 77 (G77), the largest single coalition of developing countries, is heading for a political confrontation with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon over the re-appointment of the head of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva.

Ban has indicated to the G77 his 'intention' to renew the term of office of the existing head, Supachai Panitchpakdi of Thailand, who completes a four-year stint as UNCTAD secretary-general, come Aug. 31.

As befits longstanding tradition, the secretary-general is expected to consult with the G77 since the post of UNCTAD secretary-general has always been held by a national of a developing country.

At a closed door meeting last week, the G77 did not take a decision to endorse Ban's proposal to renew Supachai's term of office for an additional four years - primarily because Africa is expected to field two candidates.

The two aspirants for the job are Guy-Alain Gauze, former minister of commodities and foreign trade of Cote d'Ivoire, described as the front-runner, and Mukhisa Kituyi, a social anthropologist and an opposition parliamentarian from Kenya.

The African Group at the United Nations will meet shortly to endorse both or one of the two candidates.

A final decision on the African candidate, however, is expected to be taken at the upcoming African Union (AU) heads of state meeting in Libya Jun. 24 to Jul. 3.

The Africans want the secretary-general to delay his decision until the AU summit. But some African diplomats think the secretary-general is trying to rush the re-appointment before the summit.

The UNCTAD appointment is a prerogative of the secretary-general, but it has to be endorsed by the 192-member General Assembly.

An African diplomat told IPS: 'What the secretary-general probably does not want is for five or 10 African ambassadors to stand up at the General Assembly and oppose the appointment. That's a strong possibility if he decides to ignore the G77.'

An Asian diplomat said: 'No one, including the secretary-general, wants a fight or a vote on such an appointment or bad blood among developing countries. The secretary-general is aware of this and is treading carefully.'

Asked for an official comment, U.N. Deputy Spokesperson Marie Okabe told IPS: 'The consultation on Dr. Supachai's reappointment is going smoothly, and we expect it to be done in due course.'

Established in 1964, UNCTAD is the principal organ of the General Assembly dealing primarily with trade, investment and development issues.

The post of UNCTAD secretary-general has been rotating geographically, with Asia, Africa and Latin America taking turns.

Raul Prebisch (Argentina) held the post for six years (1963- 1969); Manuel Perez-Guerrero (Venezuela) for five years (1969-1974); Gamani Corea (Sri Lanka) for 10 years (1974-1984); Kenneth K.S. Dadzie (Ghana) for eight years (1986-1994); and Rubens Ricupero (Brazil) for nine years (1995-2004).

Collectively, the Latin American countries have held the post for over 20 years, Asia about 14 years and Africa eight years.

The Thai government has been making a strong push for Supachai, who began his professional career at the Bank of Thailand in 1974 and later became the country's deputy prime minister in 1992.

The Thais argue there is no reason why Supachai should not serve a second term, as did most of the previous heads of UNCTAD.

But his opponents point out that Supachai also served three years as director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva, counting a total of seven years in two international bodies.

A letter being circulated by Supachai's supporters says he should 'receive the possibility of serving a second mandate because, if the principle of two consecutive mandates is not respected, this will create a serious precedent for the entire United Nations.'

'In UNCTAD, the solidarity among developing countries and the cause of development itself, will seriously suffer if this happened,' the letter warns.

At this stage, the letter says, an African candidature 'could seriously affect the established practice.'

Since there has been heavy political lobbying both by Asians and Africans, Supachai has warned his staffers not to be drawn into it.

Citing staff rules, he says 'it is entirely improper for international civil servants to lobby or seek support from government representatives or members of legislative organs to obtain advancement either for themselves or for others or to block or reverse unfavourable decisions regarding their status.'

© Inter Press Service (2009) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service

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