KAMPALA, Uganda — Uganda has formally nominated veteran diplomat Ambassador Olara A. Otunnu as its candidate for the position of Secretary-General of the United Nations, marking the country’s entry into the race to succeed António Guterres when his second term ends on Dec. 31, 2026.
Uganda’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Adonia Ayebare, submitted the nomination in a letter dated July 24 to the President of the UN General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock, and the President of the UN Security Council. The candidature was circulated to UN member states on July 25, making Otunnu the seventh officially declared contender for the organization’s top post.
In the nomination letter, Ayebare described Otunnu as a seasoned statesman with more than four decades of leadership in the United Nations system and the broader international community.
“Mr. Otunnu brings to this candidature over four decades of leadership within the United Nations system and the wider international community,” Ayebare wrote. “His candidature reflects the breadth of experience, statesmanship, and record of consensus building that the Republic of Uganda considers essential to the Office of the Secretary-General at this juncture.”
Uganda’s Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vincent Bagiire, also reaffirmed the government’s confidence in Otunnu’s candidacy.
“The Government of Uganda is confident that Ambassador Otunnu’s unique breadth of experience, spanning the UN Secretariat, the Security Council, national government, academia, and grassroots peacebuilding, makes him exceptionally well suited to lead the United Nations at this critical juncture in global affairs,” Bagiire said, while urging UN member states to give the bid their full support.
The nomination has received bipartisan attention in Uganda. Democratic Party President Norbert Mao welcomed the decision, describing it as a significant act of national reconciliation.
“Thirty six years ago Ambassador Olara Otunnu had a clean shot at the position of UN Secretary-General but politics got in the way. Thirty six years later, in the spirit of reconciliation, Uganda has endorsed one of its most illustrious sons for the UN top job,” Mao wrote on X.
Born in northern Uganda in 1950, Otunnu is one of the country’s most accomplished diplomats. He served as Uganda’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations from 1980 to 1985 and chaired the UN Security Council in December 1981. During his presidency of the council, he helped resolve a deadlock in the selection of the UN Secretary-General by introducing the informal straw balloting system that later became known as the “Otunnu Formula” and has since been used in successive appointments.
He later served as Uganda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1985 to 1986 before returning to the international stage.
From 1997 to 2005, Otunnu was the first UN Under Secretary General and Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. During his tenure, he successfully elevated the protection of children affected by war to the Security Council’s agenda and played a leading role in developing the monitoring and compliance mechanism established under Security Council Resolution 1612 of 2005, which remains in operation today.
Before that appointment, he served as president of the International Peace Academy, now known as the International Peace Institute, from 1990 to 1998.
Otunnu studied at the University of Oxford and Harvard Law School and is fluent in English, French and Luo. In recent years, he has co led the Roco Paco peacebuilding initiative in northern Uganda alongside retired Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny Dollo. He also served as president of the Uganda People’s Congress from 2010 to 2015 and contested Uganda’s 2011 presidential election, finishing fourth.
Uganda’s nomination comes at a late stage in the UN selection process. Most declared candidates have already participated in interactive dialogues with member states and a public town hall debate held on July 23, events that Otunnu did not attend.
The UN Security Council is expected to hold its first informal and anonymous straw poll on July 30 to measure support among its 15 members before forwarding a recommendation to the General Assembly for formal appointment. The successful candidate will assume office on Jan. 1, 2027.
Otunnu becomes the second African candidate in the race after former Senegalese President Macky Sall, who was nominated by Burundi. Other candidates include Michelle Bachelet of Chile, Rafael Grossi of Argentina, Rebeca Grynspan of Costa Rica, María Fernanda Espinosa of Ecuador, and Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett of Guyana.
Although many diplomats have argued that the principle of regional rotation favors a candidate from Latin America and the Caribbean, the only regional group yet to produce a UN Secretary-General, Otunnu’s extensive diplomatic record and decades of service within the United Nations have positioned him as a notable contender.
His nomination has also attracted attention because it represents Uganda’s endorsement of a respected international figure who was once an outspoken critic of the current government. More details on his campaign are expected as the Security Council begins deliberations on the next UN Secretary-General.
