UN chief calls for permanent Security Council seat for Africa

The organization’s current composition has failed to keep pace with a changing world, says Antonio Guterres

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for reforms to the Security Council that would include allocating a permanent seat to Africa, describing the continent’s underrepresentation at the organization as unacceptable.

Guterres made the statement on Monday at a debate in New York about addressing “historical injustice and enhancing Africa’s effective representation” on the UN Security Council (UNSC).

He criticized the council’s current structure as outdated, claiming that it has failed to keep up with a changing world.

“Africa is under-represented in global governance structures – from the Security Council to international financial institutions – but over-represented in the very challenges these structures are designed to address. Conflicts, emergencies, and geopolitical divisions have an outsized impact on African countries,” the UN chief stated.

“We cannot accept that the world’s pre-eminent peace and security body lacks a permanent voice for a continent of well over a billion people,” Guterres insisted.

The Security Council has 15 members, five of which are permanent – Russia, China, the US, the UK, and France – and which have the right to veto any resolution. Algeria, Mozambique, and Sierra Leone currently represent Africa as non-permanent members.

Sierra Leonean President Julius Maada Bio told the council on Monday that Africa wants two permanent seats and two additional nonpermanent ones.

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“Eighty years after its creation, the council has been stuck in time. Its imbalanced composition is at odds with current realities and unjust, undermining its legitimacy and effectiveness. Africa remains the unquestionable victim,” Maada Bio said.

“Africa wants the veto abolished. However, if UN member states wish to retain the veto, it must be extended to all new permanent members as a matter of justice,” the West African nation’s leader stated.

The 55-nation African Union (AU) has long sought permanent representation in the UNSC. In 2005, the bloc formed the C-10 group, whose primary mission is to present, advocate for, and rally support for the common African position on Security Council reforms.

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Last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed support for the AU’s bid for a seat on the UNSC and the G20, noting that it would reflect the desire of African nations to have their voices strongly heard.

The AU was formally admitted to the G20 group of leading economies during the bloc’s September summit in New Delhi, India.

Earlier this year, Guterres told reporters in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, that all five permanent members of the UNSC have been “favorable” to the demand for Africa to have proper representation in the body.