UNITED NATIONS On January 05, 2007, Tanzanian Foreign Minister Asha-Rose Migiro became the third person – and second woman – in history to be appointed United Nations Deputy Secretary-General when she accepted the post offered to her by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Two calls, one from President Jakaya Kikwete and another from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon changed Dr Asha-Rose Migiro’s life. Dr Migiro was on Friday, January 05, chairing a meeting in Lesotho’s capital Maseru, when she suddenly received a phone call from her boss, President Kikwete, in Dar es Salaam. She walked out to answer the call. The President was brief and up to point: The Secretary General of the UN wanted her to call him immediately because he wanted to make an announcement within two hours with regard to the appointment of his Deputy. She phoned New York there and then, but the Secretary-General had gone into a meeting, so she left a message with his aides, and shortly afterward they phoned her back. Ban Ki-Moon was also brief and up to the point – he told her from her experience as Minister for Community Development Gender and Children, and also from her experience in the current position as Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, he had decided she was a suitable and qualified candidate to assume the position of Deputy Secretary-General of the UN. Then the Secretary-General asked her: “Tell me if you are willing to accept the offer because I have to make an announcement immediately.” Almost in disbelief, Dr Migiro accepted the offer, and the Secretary-General congratulated her. That was the end of the short trans-Atlantic telephone conversation which in a sudden quirk of fate completely transformed her life. Excited and tense, the minister came back to her present circumstance and almost forced herself to walk back into the conference room to assume talks between Lesotho’s political parties – posing as if nothing transfixing had happened, which was the most difficult part, given the issue at hand. And that was how Dr Migiro received the news of her appointment to the world body’s number two position late Friday afternoon – a position which catapulted her into the real centre of world attention and diplomatic activity that touches the entire globe. Despite the dozens of telephone calls coming through to her, she received the news. When she was contacted by the writer, the first thing was a long laugh and she said she had been questioning herself whether she was going to manage the job and if soÃÆ’Æ‘ÂÂÃÆ’ÂÀÃ…¬ÃÆ’ÂÃ’šÂ¬Ã‚Âhow? That was on Friday night. But the following day the minister, exuding total confidence, narrated events leading to her appointment. First she had only met the Secretary-General as former Foreign Minister of South Korea when he was welcoming guests to a dinner party during the recent visit of President Kikwete to Korea. Apart from the official talks they had held, there was no further communication between the two ministers. After Ban’s appointment as UN Secretary-General, Tanzania’s Mission at the UN contacted president Kikwete with a request that Dr Migiro send in her CV for the position of Deputy Secretary-General. She did and just forgot about the CV and the position, assuming she might not get it. She said last Saturday that when the President phoned her, she at first thought it was probably related to the transportation arrangements for a colleague’s remains, which she had been involved in before leaving for MaseruÃÆ’Æ‘ÂÂÃÆ’ÂÀÃ…¬ÃÆ’ÂÃ’šÂ¬Ã‚Âonly to find that it was about something completely different. Migiro is an academic who excelled well above other students, being the first woman to get first class honours for her Law degree course at the university of Dar es salaam in 1980. Reports say there has not been another female student who has broken her record throughout the history for law faculty which started in 1961. Following her high-class performance, she was immediately recruited by the Faculty as a tutorial assistant as she pursued her LLM degree, ending with a LLD which she did in West Germany at that time. She came back to full-time teaching at the university where she rose to a senior lecturer, before she veered into politics in the 2000 general elections. She sailed in through the women’s special seats ticket which had been proposed by the women’s organization UWT in order to expand women’s representation in Parliament. She won the entered Bunge after which she was immediately appointed to the position of Minister for Community Development, Gender and Children, changing to the Foreign Minister portfolio after the 2005 elections. Recalling her interest in politics, she explained that at the law Faculty, under the tutelage of professors Iss shivji and Mgongo Fimbok she had learnt to give free legal aid to women, children and the poor generally, which slowly became a passion that would later change her direction, culminating into being a fully-fledged politician now tackling issues at higher levels. And what does she feel she can contribute in the UN system at the top leadership position as the first African woman Deputy Secretary General? Dr Migiro feels the UN is now undergoing a transformation and has to deal with changing challenges globally. “Being and African, I have first-hand experience of situations facing Africa and developing countries in general. I will use this experience to contribute in effecting development changes on the global level.” In Dar es salaam, almost the entire cabinet was at the airport to receive the body of former colleague Juma Akukweti when President Kikwete summoned them into an inner room where he announced Dr Migiro’s new appointment. For a moment everyone forgot that they were in mourning and clapped hands and saluted for the lady who will no doubt place Tanzania on the world centre stage. Duties of the Deputy Secretary-General To assist the Secretary-General in managing the operations of the Secretariat; 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; To support the Secretary-General in ensuring inter-sectoral and inter-institutional coherence of activities and programmes and to support the Secretary-General in elevating the profile and leadership of the United Nations. To represent the Secretary-General at conferences, official functions and ceremonial and other occasions as may be decided by the Secretary-General; To undertake such assignments as may be determined by the Secretary-General.