An EU decision on who it would back to lead the United Nations’ food security agency is unlikely this year, and may not come at all, putting former minister Phil Hogan and other European contenders at a disadvantage.
The Irish Government nominated former minister Hogan to contest the election for the UN role. Spain and Italy have also put forward candidates, leading to fears Europe will split its support and dash its chances of securing the post.
All 193 national members of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) get one vote in the election to select the international agency’s director general.
The top job in the Rome-based agency pays a salary of $265,000 (€225,000) a year, plus an extra $50,000 “representation” allowance.
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The election to replace the current director, Qu Dongyu, a Chinese politician and administrator, will take place in late June 2027.
EU officials in Brussels are concerned that difficulty settling on a single candidate will hamstring attempts to secure the post, which a European has not held in more than 50 years.
A plan for the EU’s 27 governments to vote for a preferred choice earlier this year petered out.
It is understood the Irish Government, which holds the rotating Council of the EU presidency, will not force the matter or table a vote while it holds the deal-making role.
The Council of the EU is where the 27 member states put their stamp on policy in Brussels. The government holding the presidency is supposed to act as a neutral broker, chairing debates and putting together compromises, which means putting its national interest to one side during discussions.
Ireland had previously pushed for an EU vote to select a joint candidate for the UN race. Irish officials had to park those lobbying efforts when the Government took over the six-month council presidency in July.
The Hogan camp is confident the former Irish minister and European trade commissioner would come out on top in a vote.
The Co Kilkenny politician would be well placed to receive the support of more than a dozen governments aligned to the European People’s Party (EPP), the centre-right political family that includes Fine Gael. One source in Brussels was confident a majority of member states would back Hogan.
Spain has nominated its minister for agriculture, Luis Planas, for the role. Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez’s left-wing government is short of allies inside the EU, though Madrid believes it can pick up support from countries in South America and other regions in the actual FAO election.
“We need a European candidate who can win not only within the EU but also at the FAO, which brings together 193 countries from around the world,” one Spanish diplomatic source said.
An EU official close to the process accused Spain of resisting a vote to land on a single candidate the bloc would back. However, the diplomatic source in Madrid said Spain had no issue with member states getting behind a joint European nominee.
Italy has put forward Maurizio Martina, deputy to the current FAO director. Turkey and Angola have also put candidates into the international race. Other countries could still nominate challengers as well.
Hogan, who resigned as EU trade commissioner in the fallout of the Golfgate scandal, has been busy travelling to different parts of the world to talk up his candidacy for the UN job.
Two Department of Agriculture officials are providing administrative support to his campaign.
The FAO is tasked with leading efforts to tackle world hunger and improve global food security.
