At the 152nd IPU Assembly in Istanbul, Anda Filip of Romania has been elected as the ninth Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) – becoming the first woman to hold the position in the organisation’s 137-year history.
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Her election marks an important milestone for the IPU and places the organisation among the growing number of international institutions led by women for the first time.
Some 321 parliamentarians from 126 countries took part in a secret ballot during a session of the IPU’s Governing Council, the organisation’s main decision-making body.
With four female candidates on the ballot, Anda Filip was elected after one round of voting, winning 72% of the vote.
Ms. Filip will succeed Martin Chungong of Cameroon, whose third and final term as Secretary General concludes on 30 June 2026.
Ms. Filip worked at the IPU for over 20 years and has been Director for Member Parliaments and External Relations since 2011.
From 2003 to 2011, she was the Permanent Observer of the IPU to the United Nations in New York.
She has served as Secretary of 25 IPU Assemblies, as well as Secretary of the IPU Standing Committees on Peace and International Security and on United Nations Affairs.
The President of the Nigerian Senate, Godswill Akpabio who is also an Executive Member of the IPU is the leader of Nigeria’s delegation to the Assembly.
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