PRACTICE WHAT YOU PREACH: The United Nations loves to cast itself as the global champion for gender equality, but a quick scan of the high-level speakers this week in New York paints a very different picture. Details: We did a quick calculation and of the 34 countries slated to speak at the General Assembly today, just 3 are represented by women. Many men who have taken to the stage this week have touted their country’s woman-power credentials — even as they are painfully behind when it comes to female representation. Wesley Simina, president of the Federated States of Micronesia, spoke about the “powerful role of women in our society,†noting the island nation is a “proud matrilineal society,†during his speech to the General Assembly. President of Sierra Leone Julius Maada Bio talked up his country's "unwavering commitment to dismantle the barriers of gender inequality." In reality, both countries have an abysmal record on female representation, even though improvements are being made. Call for change: Amid the many calls for United Nations and Security Council reform this week has been a plea to address the gender imbalance. GWL Voices, which campaigns for better representation of women in multilateralism, says it’s time for the U.N. to have a female secretary general — there’s never been one in its nearly 80-year history. “We have regional rotation, which is good, but why can’t we have another resolution mandating gender alternation. Let’s do the same,†Susana Malcorra, former foreign minister of Argentina, told us outside the SDG Media Tent Thursday. “The [U.N.] Charter says ‘we the peoples’ not ‘we the men.’ The charter was actually very forward-leaning. It also says: 'equal rights for men and women,' but we haven’t implemented this.†Runners and riders: There’s been lots of chatter this week on the sidelines about who could replace António Guterres in the top job when his mandate ends in 2026. Mia Mottley, prime minister of Barbados, has been something of a star in New York this week, participating in lots of off-diary events, including a private dinner convened by Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohammed, and also attended by former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, YouTuber Lilly Singh and philanthropist Melinda French Gates. Mottley is viewed as a serious candidate for the top job, though Playbook also heard the names of former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet and Rebeca Grynspan, head of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development, floating around U.N. corridors and side events. Step in the right direction: Organizers of other events throughout the week did their best to highlight the plight of women in various corners of the world, such as Tuesday’s “Global Solidarity with Afghan Women and Girls†event. On Wednesday, the Feminist Foreign Policy Plus group, a caucus of 19 governments within the U.N. committed to pursuing gender equality, made its first multilateral political declaration on feminist foreign policy. Lyric Thompson, founder and CEO of the Feminist Foreign Policy Collaborative, told us that reaching an agreement on a declaration among such a diverse group of countries — from Germany to Tunisia, Mongolia and Sweden — was hugely significant. But she added that the initiative needs to grow. “Is 19 countries enough? No, it’s not. We of course want more countries to join, and to grow strategically.†Don’t forget the Gulf: I caught up with Princess Lamia of Saudi Arabia, secretary general of Alwaleed Philanthropies, the multi-billion-dollar Saudi philanthropic fund that works with U.N. agencies like UNICEF, UN-Habitat and UNESCO. Saudi Arabia and women’s rights are not something you usually see in the same sentence … but Princess Lamia insists that change is underway. “Forty-eight hours after the king approved driving for women, we did an affiliation with Careem [Uber’s subsidiary in Saudi Arabia] to train women. Now we have almost 40 female captains, most of whom work these jobs for extra income,†she said. Her own organization is run by 10 Saudi women. Grab your U.N. merch: And to continue with the female theme, grab a U.N. T-shirt and tote bag at the Women’s Guild shop, which is open throughout this week in the main Secretariat General building — all profits go to helping children in need throughout the world. TRUMP TALK Our own Nahal spent much of the week trying to convince diplomats to dish on the potential return of Donald Trump as U.S. president. A few takeaways from her first-person piece: — There’s some longing for a certain former U.N. ambassador: “If diplomats had to choose among the Republicans, they’d pick [Nikki] Haley. But that’s hope over reality,†one European diplomat told her. — World leaders haven’t forgotten how often Trump abandoned norms and deals. That means they are less apt to trust that Trump will come through for them. “You can only get away with such stunts for so long,†a Latin American official said. — The biggest concern among America’s closest allies is what will happen to Ukraine. It is an “existential†matter, one European minister said. European leaders are acutely aware of the current Republican debates about continuing funding for Ukraine — so much so that German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock arrived in New York this week from Kyiv via Texas to meet with Republican heavy-weight Governor Greg Abbott, with whom she discussed Ukraine and other matters. WHAT TO DO ABOUT COUPS  AFRICA FOCUS: One of the big questions this week was how the U.N. would handle the recent wave of coups in Africa, and specifically who was going to speak for Gabon and Niger. On Thursday we got an answer — no one (at least for that day). The heads of state of both countries were slated to speak on Thursday, but they were skipped over entirely. Gabon’s Interim Prime Minister Raymond Ndong Sima, who was appointed by the military junta following the recent coup, then later showed up on the General Assembly schedule for today. Let’s see … Nothing to see here: Many African delegates at the gathering would rather not directly address the recent military takeovers in Niger or Gabon. POLITICO reached out to all 54 African U.N. missions and none were willing to discuss the coups with our reporter Mona. It’s complicated: Also roaming the halls are leaders from the regional bloc of West African nations, ECOWAS, which is threatening military action against the Nigerien junta. Gabon, meanwhile, is sitting in a very prominent spot as one of the rotating members of the Security Council. Read Mona’s full story here.
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