Amina Mohammed picked for deputy Secretary-General job

Incoming Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will pick Nigeria’s Minister for the Environment Amina Mohammed as the next deputy Secretary-General, according to sources.

When the Security Council chose Guterres to lead the UN rather than one of the numerous Eastern European candidates, many wondered if Russia would push for one of their favored diplomats to take over the number two job in the organization. In a Guardian op-ed, former Ban ki-moon advisor Mark Seddon speculated that UNESCO chief Irina Bokova from Bulgaria might get the job.

But instead Guterres went with Mohammed, a well-known figure to the UN. Before she took over as Minister for the Environment in her native country she was a Special Advisor to Ban ki-moon on the UN’s sustainable development goals for 2030.

A number of UN ambassadors stated they were extremely pleased with Mohammed’s appointment.

An official announcement is expected in the coming weeks.

The deputy Secretary-General role is a relatively new one in UN terms, having only been around since 1998 when Louise Frechette, a Canadian, became the first one. Mohammed is the fifth person to hold the office and the third woman.

A spokesperson for Guterres declined to comment for this article.