The Secretary-General is the chief administrative officer of the
United Nations and the public face of the organization. His role is more of a diplomatic one because he has limited powers beyond that of persuasion.
UN Secretaries-General:
1997-:
Kofi Annan (
Ghana)
1992-
1996:
Boutros Boutros-Ghali (
Egypt)
1982-
1991:
Javier Perez de Cuellar (
Peru)
1972-
1981:
Kurt Waldheim (
Austria)
1961-
1971:
U Thant (
Myanmar(
Burma))
1953-
1961:
Dag Hammarskjöld (
Sweden)
1946-
1952:
Trygve Lie (
Norway)