Pledging to continue with management reforms, United Nations Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon on Wednesday said the world body must change to meet the expectations of the international community.
Addressing the UN staff on his first full day in office, Ban urged them to work with him to make the organisation more mobile, professional and capable of responding to the expectations of the world community.
Asserting that he wanted change with continuity, he "We must show to the international community that we are ready and eager to change."
The secretary-general said he planned to be flexible and pragmatic in all of his actions, adding that the strength of his dedication and resolve is greater than ever.
"Let us work as one and sail together with courage and common purpose," he added.
In implied criticism of outgoing Secretary-General Kofi Annan's way of handling staff, Ban said that staff morale has plummeted in recent years in the wake of harsh and sometimes unfair criticism of the Secretariat due to lack of accountability to ethical lapses.
"Not all of the criticisms are justified, but some of them warrant our urgent attention, and we must take bold steps to dispel them," he said.
He vowed to make meritocracy his watchword on human resources, while allowing for geographical representation and gender balance, set career development as a top priority, using training, mobility and evaluation, and encouraging staff mobility, not only between departments at Headquarters, but also between New York and the field.
© 2026