Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/UNITED NATIONS: Cindy McCain, The United States ambassador to the United Nations and widow of former US Senator John McCain from Arizona, is about to take over as head of the UN World Food Program (WFP), putting the longtime political spouse at the top of the greatest humanitarian organization in the world and on the front of an escalating global food crisis.
According to two individuals having knowledge of the situation, the UN will announce McCain’s appointment on Thursday. McCain, a close political supporter of President Joe Biden, has rapidly climbed up in international food policy.
McCain will need to mobilize funds for the record-breaking 349 million people suffering from acute food insecurity worldwide in the face of a geopolitical firestorm over the conflict in Ukraine, worries that China is hoarding global food supplies, and most importantly, a call for a reduction in funding support from members of Congress. Her experience in campaigning for her late husband and relationships with American politicians will be crucial in this regard.
Despite decades of involvement in humanitarian work, McCain’s nomination as the United States ambassador to three UN bodies for food and agriculture last year was her first official position in the field of food policy.
She is a member of a tiny group of American diplomats working in that position, which is based in Rome, to lessen the effects of Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has driven up food prices worldwide and put dozens of vulnerable nations on the verge of civil war. McCain called her first few months on job “a baptism by fire” in an interview with POLITICO from a year ago.
In an interview with POLITICO last month, McCain stated that she thought the Middle East might do more to support international food aid in light of the rapidly developing situation.
McCain urged Beijing to get involved when asked about China’s role in ensuring global food security and American criticism of Beijing for not doing more. There are always conditions tied to China, she continued.
McCain to replace David Beasley as WFP head
McCain will be replacing David Beasley, the current executive director of WFP and a former Republican governor of South Carolina.
Qu Dongyu, the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization’s director general, Beasley and other top food program representatives met with McCain on Wednesday.
