| Post: | Deputy Secretary-General |
| Body: | the United Nations |
| Insignia: | Emblem of the United Nations.svg |
| Insigniasize: | 85px |
| Insigniacaption: | Emblem of the United Nations |
| Incumbent: | Amina J. Mohammed |
| Incumbentsince: | 1 January 2017 |
| Department: | United Nations United Nations Secretariat |
| Style: | Her Excellency |
| Seat: | UN Headquarters New York City (international territory) |
| Reports To: | The Secretary-General |
| Appointer: | The Secretary-General |
| Appointer Qualified: | The Secretary-General appoints the Deputy Secretary-General following consultationswith Member States and in accordance with Article 101 of the Charter of the United Nations. |
| Termlength: | See below |
| Termlength Qualified: | The term of office of the Deputy Secretary-General must not exceed that of the Secretary-General. |
| Inaugural: | Louise Fréchette |
| Precursor: | Deputy Secretary-General of the League of Nations |
| Formation: | 1997 |
| Constituting Instrument: | General Assembly Resolution 52/12 B |
| Website: | Deputy Secretary-General |
The deputy secretary-general of the United Nations is the deputy to the secretary-general of the United Nations. The office was created to handle many of the administrative responsibilities of the secretary-general, help manage Secretariat operations, and ensure coherence of activities and programs.[1] [2] The post was formally established by the General Assembly at the end of 1997.[3]
Amina J. Mohammed of Nigeria was named as deputy secretary-general by then secretary-general-designate António Guterres. Mohammed assumed the office the same day as Guterres began his term, on 1 January 2017.
Responsibilities generally delegated by the secretary-general to the deputy secretary-general include:[4]
(a) To assist the Secretary-General in managing the operations of the Secretariat;
(b) To act for the Secretary-General at United Nations Headquarters in the absence of the Secretary-General and in other cases as may be decided by the Secretary-General;
(c) To support the Secretary-General in ensuring inter-sectoral and inter-institutional coherence of activities and programs and to support the Secretary-General in elevating the profile and leadership of the United Nations in the economic and social spheres, including further efforts to strengthen the United Nations as a leading centre for development policy and development assistance;
(d) To represent the Secretary-General at conferences, official functions and ceremonial and other occasions as may be decided by the Secretary-General;
(e) To undertake such assignments as may be determined by the Secretary-General;
The director in the Office of the Deputy Secretary-General is a sitting observer of the United Nations Development Group.[5]
Canadian Louise Fréchette was the first deputy secretary-general of the United Nations, holding the position from 1998 to 2005. She was appointed to the post by Secretary-General Kofi Annan and assumed her duties on 2 March 1998. In 2005, partly in response to criticism by former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker for failed management of the Iraq Oil-for-Food Programme, Frechette announced her resignation. She remained at her post until 31 March 2006.[4]
On 3 March 2006 it was announced that Mark Malloch Brown from the United Kingdom would succeed Louise Fréchette as deputy secretary-general on 1 April 2006. Brown left his post concurrent with Kofi Annan's departure as secretary-general on 31 December 2006.[4]
| Portrait | Deputy Secretary-General | Country | Term | Secretary-General | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | align=center |  Canada | 2 March 1998 – 1 April 2006 |  Kofi Annan | |||
| 2 | align=center | Mark Malloch Brown |  United Kingdom | 1 April 2006 – 31 December 2006 | |||
| 3 | align=center | Asha-Rose Migiro | 5 February 2007 – 1 July 2012 | Ban Ki-moon | |||
| 4 | align=center |  Sweden | 1 July 2012 – 31 December 2016 | ||||
| 5 | align=center | Amina J. Mohammed[6] |  Nigeria | 1 January 2017 – present |  António Guterres |
| width=50% | width=50% | Deputy Secretaries-General | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Western European and Others | 3 | ||
| Eastern European Group | 0 | ||
| Latin American and Caribbean Group | 0 | ||
| Asia-Pacific Group | 0 | ||
| African Group | 2 |