ByREUTERS

JUNE 16, 2026 06:05

An Ecuadorian contender for the position of United Nations secretary-general stated on Monday that the global institution is still vital yet requires a careful reduction in size.

Maria Fernanda Espinosa, who previously served as Ecuador's foreign minister and defense minister, is one of six individuals vying to replace Antonio Guterres when his term concludes at year's end.

The person who follows Guterres will confront a major challenge in renewing an entity facing turmoil and reduced influence.

"I hold no illusions regarding the obstacles ahead, yet I stay hopeful," Espinosa remarked during a session on her bid.

Similar to fellow candidates, she pledged to pursue reform initiatives at the UN and noted that the purpose of the body established after World War Two stays "undeniable."

'The UN needs to rebuild credibility'

"Frequently, the UN is absent from key moments or pushed aside. Often it proves slow, divided, and limited ... the UN must restore trust and demonstrate, rather than merely claim, that it can produce genuine results," she said.

"We can reduce the UN in a measured way, while bolstering national responsibility and outcomes, and renewing confidence in the UN," she said.

Espinosa, a former Ecuadorian envoy to the UN who also led the UN General Assembly from 2018 to 2019, proposed that national governments might assume larger responsibilities in fields where the UN now works, though she offered no specifics.

At home, she worked in the progressive government of former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, yet she has moved away from his party in recent times.

Race to succeed Guterres

The small Caribbean island nation of Antigua and Barbuda put her forward to follow Guterres. Ecuador's current administration under President Daniel Noboa, a conservative partner of US President Donald Trump, has offered no statement on her bid.

Guyana's President Irfaan Ali declared last week that his nation would put forward its UN Ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett for the role, and she will face a session on her candidacy on Thursday.

In April, four additional candidates also pledged UN reforms while supporting its fundamental goals of conflict resolution and development aid.

They include Rebeca Grynspan, a former vice president of Costa Rica; Michelle Bachelet, the former Chilean president; Macky Sall, a former president of Senegal; and Rafael Grossi of Argentina, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Voting is set for later this year.

No woman has held the post

No woman has ever served as UN secretary-general.

Espinosa informed reporters that after 80 years of the UN it was time a woman was selected, yet she added: "I would also note that not just any woman, but the suitable woman, and the fitting leader that the UN merits."

Tradition indicates that a secretary-general should not originate from one of the permanent members of the Security Council, Britain, China, France, Russia, and the United States, even though the major powers' support remains essential in a complex and lengthy selection process.