Rachel N. Mayanja | |
---|---|
![]() Mayanja in 2009 | |
Born | |
Nationality | Ugandan |
Citizenship | Uganda |
Alma mater | Makerere University (Bachelor of Laws) Law Development Centre (Diploma in Legal Practice) Harvard University (Master of Laws) |
Occupation | Lawyer & Diplomat |
Years active | 1996 — present |
Known for | Diplomacy |
Rachel N. Mayanja is a Ugandan lawyer and diplomat. Currently, she serves as the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women. She was appointed to that position by the United Nations Secretary-General in 2004. The appointment is at the level of Assistant Secretary-General. [1]
She was born in Central Uganda.
Rachel Mayanja obtained the degree of Bachelor of Laws (LLB), from Makerere University. [2] She also obtained the Diploma in Law Practice (Dip. Law Pract.), from the Law Development Center in Kampala, the capital of Uganda and the largest city in that country. Her degree of Master of Laws (LLM), was obtained from Harvard University, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. [3]
Mayanja joined the United Nations, soon after the First World Conference on Women, held in Mexico City from 19 June 1975 until 2 July 1975. [4] She first worked in the Division for Equal Rights for Women in the United Nations' Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs. As the Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary-General for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs, she was an active participant in the development of policies and attended conferences at the non-governmental and intergovernmental levels on topics dealing with gender, family, the disabled, the youth and the aged.
From 1989 to 1990, Mayanja served on the United Nations peacekeeping missions to Namibia (UNTAG), where she worked with the United Nations civilian police to oversee the elections leading to independence. From 1992 to 1994, she served in the UN Mission in Iraq/Kuwait (UNIKOM), where she was responsible for the provision of administrative support to the observer mission. Between 1995 until 1999, Mayanja held different senior positions in the Office of Human Resources Management, including as Chief, Common System and Specialist Service, dealing with policies regarding salaries and entitlements, as well as appeals and disciplinary cases. In 1999, she served as secretary to the UN Secretary-General's Task Force on the reform of human resources management.
In 2000, she was seconded by the United Nations to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as the Director, Human Resources Management Division. She played a vital role in the implementation of the reform of human resources management at FAO. This was her last assignment prior to her appointment to her current position.
Mayanja lives in New York City, New York State, in the United States. She is the mother of three (3) children.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security. Its Latin motto, fiat panis, translates to "let there be bread". It was founded on 16 October 1945.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, commonly known as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) or the United Nations Human Rights Office, is a department of the Secretariat of the United Nations that works to promote and protect human rights that are guaranteed under international law and stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948. The office was established by the United Nations General Assembly on 20 December 1993 in the wake of the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights.
The United Nations Secretariat is one of the six major organs of the United Nations (UN), with the others being (a) the General Assembly, (b) the Security Council, (c) the Economic and Social Council, (d) the defunct Trusteeship Council, and (e) the International Court of Justice. The secretariat is the UN's executive arm. The secretariat has an important role in setting the agenda for the deliberative and decision-making bodies of the UN, and the implementation of the decision of these bodies. The secretary-general, who is appointed by the General Assembly, is the head of the secretariat.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan is a UN Special Political Mission tasked with assisting the people of Afghanistan.
Speciosa Naigaga Wandira Kazibwe, is a Ugandan politician and first female vice president in Africa. She was the sixth vice president of Uganda from 1994 to 2003, making her the first woman in Africa to hold the position of vice-president of a sovereign nation. Dr. Speciosa Kazibwe is also a Ugandan surgeon. She is also referred to as "Nnalongo", because of her twins. In August 2013, she was appointed by the United Nations's Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon as United Nations Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa.
An under-secretary-general of the United Nations (USG) is a senior official within the United Nations System, normally appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the secretary-general for a renewable term of four years. Under-secretary-general is the third highest rank in the United Nations, after the secretary-general and the deputy secretary-general. The rank is held by the heads of different UN entities, certain high officials of the United Nations Secretariat, and high-level envoys. The United Nations regards the rank as equal to that of a cabinet minister of a member state, and under-secretaries-general have diplomatic immunity under the UN Charter.
The Fourth World Conference on Women: Action for Equality, Development and Peace was the name given for a conference convened by the United Nations during 4–15 September 1995 in Beijing, China.
Angela Evelyn Vernon King was a Jamaican diplomat. She worked for the United Nations for 38 years, from 1966 to 2004, working mainly for equal rights for women. She was appointed Assistant Secretary-General for gender issues in 1997, remaining in that post until she retired in 2004.
International Women's Year (IWY) was the name given to 1975 by the United Nations. Since that year March 8 has been celebrated as International Women's Day, and the United Nations Decade for Women, from 1976 to 1985, was also established.
Noeleen Heyzer is a Singaporean social scientist, diplomat, and United Nations official. She is the current United Nations Special Envoy on Myanmar, an office to which she was appointed by Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres in October 2021.
Catherine Pollard is a diplomat who has been serving as Under Secretary-General of the United Nations for Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance since 2019. From 2015 until 2019, she was the Coordinator for Multilingualism for the United Nations; in this capacity, she also served as Under Secretary-General of the United Nations for General Assembly and Conference Management.
Jan Margaret Beagle is a diplomat from New Zealand who has been serving as the Director-General of the International Development Law Organization (IDLO) since 2020. From 2017 until 2019, she was the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations for Management, appointed to this position by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on 1 June 2017. She then served as Special Advisor to the Secretary-General on Systemwide Implementation of Chief Executive Board decisions.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1493, adopted unanimously on 28 July 2003, after recalling all resolutions on the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) until 30 July 2004 and raised its troop level from 8,700 to 10,800.
The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, also known as UN Women, is a United Nations entity working for gender equality and the empowerment of women. UN Women advocates for the rights of women and girls and LGBTIQ+ rights, and focuses on a wide array of issues, including violence against women and violence against LGBTIQ+ people.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1653, adopted unanimously on January 27, 2006, after recalling previous resolutions concerning the situations in the African Great Lakes region, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burundi, particularly resolutions 1625 (2005), 1631 (2005), 1649 (2005) and 1650 (2005), the Council addressed the stability of the Great Lakes region in Africa.
Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri is a former assistant secretary-general at the United Nations and the former deputy executive director of UN Women. Prior to her 15-year stint at the United Nations, she served as an Indian diplomat for 28 years. From 1999 until 2002, she was India's Ambassador to Hungary, while also concurrently accredited to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Florence Ndagire is a female Ugandan lawyer, who works as a legal researcher and human rights lawyer at the United Nations (UN) based in Geneva, Switzerland. Ndagire, who is totally blind, also serves as the chairperson of the UN Women Regional Group, for Eastern and Southern Africa, comprising twelve countries. She is the first visually impaired person, male or female to qualify and receive licensure as a lawyer in Uganda.
The Republic of Kazakhstan became a member of the United Nations on March 2, 1992. Kazakhstan was elected to serve on the UN Security Council for the 2017–2018 term. UN Secretary-General António Guterres in remarks to the UNSC recognized Kazakhstan's work to rid the world of weapons of mass destruction and global non-proliferation efforts.
The Declaration on the Rights of Peasants (UNDROP), officially United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas, is an UNGA resolution on Human rights with "universal understanding", adopted by the United Nations in 2018.
Thelma Awori is a Ugandan professor, former Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations, and feminist. She was born on March 25, 1943 in Monrovia, Liberia and came to Uganda in 1965. She is a former Uganda People's Congress diehard, who defected to the Movement. She is an individual African feminist who believes in justice for women and the validity of women’s perspectives. She sadly found an extremely high prevalence of internalized oppression due to religion and socialization.