* Former New Zealand PM Clark named to senior U.N. post

* Clark to head $5 billion U.N. development program

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By Patrick Worsnip

UNITED NATIONS, March 26 (Reuters) - The United Nations on Thursday named former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark as the next head of the U.N. Development Program (UNDP), one of the top jobs in the world body.

The UNDP, which employs nearly 8,000 people in 166 countries and has a budget of some $5 billion, is the United Nations' global development network, providing training, advice and support for developing countries.

Clark, whose center-left Labour-led government of New Zealand was ousted in an election last November after nine years in power, had been backed for the U.N. post by the new National-led government. She quit as head of the Labour party after the election loss.

U.N. diplomats said the choice of Clark, who will serve a four-year term if confirmed by the U.N. General Assembly -- expected to be a formality -- reflected a desire for a candidate with experience of political governance.

She replaces Kemal Dervis of Turkey, who stepped down at the end of last month, citing personal reasons. Since then, the agency has been run by Dervis's deputy, Ad Melkert of the Netherlands.

U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas, announcing the nomination, said Clark "has the needed leadership and international recognition" and would "bring a strategic perspective coupled with fresh thinking and impetus for change."

"Ms. Clark is expected to bring to the position her well-honed consensus-building skills and commitment to a multilateral approach to addressing global financial and development issues," Montas added.

The head, or "administrator," of UNDP is widely seen as the second or third most important job in the United Nations.

UNDP was at the center of controversy during the U.S. Bush administration that left office in January. The Bush administration sought to show that it had engaged in financial malpractice in North Korea, but an external inquiry cleared the agency of serious wrongdoing.

Clark, 59, a former political science lecturer with a passion for mountaineering, has been a member of parliament since 1981 and was New Zealand's first elected female leader.

In her home country, she has a reputation as a passionless intellectual, but won respect for calm demeanor and formidable intellect.

Under her leadership, New Zealand charted a more independent foreign policy, although it improved relations with the United States, damaged since the mid-1980s as a result of New Zealand's anti-nuclear policy.

She opposed the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, but committed New Zealand special forces to fight in Afghanistan. (Additional reporting by Gyles Beckford in Wellington; Editing by Anthony Boadle)

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