Ìbùkúnolúwa Dàda and Abolaji Omitogun

At the ongoing week-long 79th United Nations General Assembly, an annual gathering of 193 countries for policy-making, deliberation, and representation on international matters according to Chapter IV of the UN Charter, Africa is pushing for permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council.

Representatives from Nigeria spearheaded this request at the UNGA which is the UN organ in charge of considering the pivotal influence of Africa on the world’s future, the continent has been pushing for this representation vehemently since 2005, and there is no better time to make this overdue decision.

Stating his reason in the statement delivered by Nigeria’s Vice president on Tuesday, September 25 in New York, Tinubu said, “The Security Council should be expanded, in the permanent and non-permanent member categories, to reflect the diversity and plurality of the world. We fully support the efforts of Secretary-General Guterres in this regard. 

Africa must be accorded the respect that it deserves in the Security Council. Our Continent deserves a place in the permanent members category of the Security Council, with the same rights and responsibilities as other Permanent Members.” Nigeria, which has been a non-permanent member of the Council ten times, is pushing, as President Tinubu has stated. 

Malawi’s President Lazarus Mccarthy Chakwera also called for “two permanent seats with veto power to Africa,” stating “we need this fix to strengthen our voice on the issues that matter to us in Africa,”

Kenyan President William Ruto aligned with the stance. Criticizing the current system “has proven inadequate.” “An institution that excludes 54 African countries, representing 1.4 billion people, while allowing one nation to veto decisions of the remaining 193 member states, is unacceptable,” he said.

Similarly, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa aired his displeasure on the unfairness of the system two days before President Tinubu’s statement. 

“Placing the fate of the world’s security in the hands of a select few when it is the vast majority who bear the brunt of these threats is unjust, unfair and unsustainable,” he said. 

Others include Sierra Leone which is currently a non-permanent member, whose President Julius Maada Bio emphasized in 2022 that it is either African countries that are given veto power as permanent members or all permanent members lose it. 

It is not only African presidents who think Africa should accorded its due respect but US President Joe Biden too. Ten days to the High-Level Week, President Biden’s UN ambassador, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, announced that the United States supports two permanent seats for Africa on the UN Security Council, though without veto power. Russia has also expressed support for Africa’s bid to gain permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council following an announcement by the U.S. China, however, has not articulated a position although it has stated that it supports Africa’s “legitimate interests” in the United Nations, including the Security Council.

Africa Deserves More Representation and Veto Power on the UN Security Council

When the UN Security Council was established in 1946 after World War II to maintain international peace and security, most African states were still colonized and the UN member states stood at 51 and the UN Security Council had no African country in the inaugural 11 states. 

However, as African states started gaining independence in the 1960’s and member states more than doubled to 117 in 1965, it became clear that Africa representation had to be reflected. The UN Ambassador Arthur Goldberg understood this and ensured a commensurate adjustment to include Asia, Latin America, and Africa as non-permanent members to make the UN Security Council have 15 seats—5 permanent and 10 non-permanent with two-year tenure rotation across countries in 5 region groups. 

By 1979, UN state members started to realize the need for change in the UN Security Council and this birthed three proposals. The proposal from Germany, Japan, Brazil, and India seeks permanent seats without veto rights on a 25-member council. A second, backed by middle-ranking countries like Italy and Pakistan, proposes a council with 10 new non-permanent seats. However, the African Union aims for 11 new spots: six permanent seats (two with veto power for Africa) and five non-permanent seats.

By 2005, the African Union reached the Ezulwini Consensus in Ethiopia which re-echoed Africa’s stance for at least two permanent and five non-permanent seats. 

Fast forward to today in 2024, none of these proposals have been approved and the UN member states have grown to 193 with South Sudan, an African country, being the latest addition in January 2011. South Sudan broke from Sudan after years of Civil war, S.Sudan is still in another Civil war which started April 2023, and D.R. Congo has been in civil unrest for over three decades. 

Considering these security issues are one of the most longstanding international issues, it is concerning that no single African nation has a permanent seat on the UN Security Council which can allow them to veto decisions such as sending UN peacekeepers to these areas. 

Another region with recurring security issues and points towards the need for African representation on the permanent seat is the Middle East and Arab nations which alternate between the African group and Asia-pacific groups on the non-permanent seats of the UN Security Council. 

Amid this, the rationale for enhanced African representation is stronger than ever. The demographic landscape is shifting dramatically; by 2050, one in four people globally will be African, and by the end of the century, Africa is projected to become the most populous continent. Currently, African nations represent 28% of votes in the General Assembly, surpassing other regions. This demographic and political weight demands a corresponding presence on the Security Council.

To achieve this pivotal demand, Africa needs a two-thirds majority of the General Assembly, including the agreement of all five permanent members with veto power. This emphasizes the importance of solidarity in advocacy among African nations which seems to be in the right direction, at least for now. 

Ìbùkúnolúwa Dàda and Abolaji Omitogun