ARTICLE 17: THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARIAT, ESTABLISHMENT AND COMPOSITION 1. There is hereby established an Executive Secretariat of the Community. 2. The Secretariat shall be headed by the Executive Secretary assisted by Deputy Executive Secretaries and such other staff as may be required for the smooth functioning of the Community. ARTICLE 18: APPOINTMENTS 1. The Executive Secretary shall be appointed by the Authority for a 4-year term renewable only once for another 4-year period. He can only be removed from office by the Authority upon its own initiative or on the recommendation of the Council of Ministers. 2. The Ministerial Committee on the Selection and Evaluation of the Performance of Statutory Appointees shall evaluate the three (3) candidates nominated by the Member State to which the statutory post has been allocated and make recommendations to the Council of Ministers. Council shall propose to the Authority the appointment of the candidate adjudged the best. 3. The Executive Secretary shall be a person of proven competence and integrity, with a global vision of political and economic problems and regional integration. 4. a) The Deputy Executive Secretaries and other Statutory Appointees shall be appointed by the Council of Ministers on the proposal of the Ministerial Committee on the Selection and Evaluation of the Performance of Statutory Appointees following the evaluation of the three (3) candidates nominated by their respective Member States to whom the posts have been allocated. They shall be appointed for a period of 4 years renewable only once for a further 4-year term. b) Vacancies shall be advertised in all Member States to which statutory posts have been allocated. 5. In appointing professional staff of the Community, due regard shall be had, subject to ensuring the highest standards of efficiency and technical competence, to maintaining equitable geographical distribution of posts among nationals of all Member States, ARTICLE 19: FUNCTIONS 1. Unless otherwise provided in the Treaty or in a Protocol, the Executive Secretary shall be the chief executive officer of the Community and all its institutions. 2. The Executive Secretary shall direct the-activities of the Executive Secretariat and shall, unless otherwise provided in a Protocol, be the legal representative of the Institutions of the Community in their totality.