Former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Guterres is to take over, ending Ban's decade as United Nations Secretary General.

Ban said it has been a "privilege" to have been at the head of an organisation that endeavoured to tamp down global conflict.
Ban said it has been a "privilege" to have been at the head of an organisation that endeavoured to tamp down global conflict. (TRT World and Agencies)

UN Secretary Ban Ki-moon paid an emotional farewell to the United Nations on Friday, describing his two-term stint at the helm of the global body as something of a fairy tale.

"I feel a bit like Cinderella. Tomorrow at midnight, everything changes!" he joked to staff and colleagues as he wrapped up a decade leading the United Nations.

Beginning on Sunday, former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Guterres, 67, takes over from Ban.

Guterres is the first former head of government to lead the UN, succeeding Ban for a five-year term.

TRT World's Kahraman Haliscelik has more from New York.

Source: TRTWorld and agencies