The United Nations has initiated the process to elect its next Secretary General. The UN Security Council and the General Assembly made an unprecedented call to 193 member states to recommend women candidates for the top position, which has been held by a man for the past 70 years. The UN also vowed to make the election process more transparent and inclusive.

No woman has served as UN Secretary General in the 70 years of its existence. The incumbent Ban Ki-moon, whose tenure will end next year after serving two five-year terms as UN chief, has also been a strong advocate of electing a woman as his successor, reported PTI.

India has also pushed for improving the existing process of selecting the world body's chief, saying that gender equality and regional rotation should be considered. The next UN Secretary General will take office in January 2017.