Nigerian President, Bola Tinubu, on Thursday demanded at least two permanent seats for Africa on the United Nations Security Council, complete with veto power, as he pushed for a broad restructuring of the global body to reflect present-day realities.
The Nigerian leader’s address was delivered by Vice President Kashim Shettima during the General Debate at the ongoing 81st Session of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Tinubu, according to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communications, Stanley Nkwocha, said the reform of the UN must begin with reconstituting the Security Council, arguing that the world of 2026 cannot remain captive to the distribution of power in 1945.
“Africa cannot continue to fill the Council’s agenda while remaining absent from its permanent membership,” he said.
Citing the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration, he said Nigeria was demanding at least two permanent seats for Africa, with full rights and responsibilities including the veto for as long as it exists, along with five non-permanent seats in total.
“The authority to speak for humanity carries an obligation to represent it,” he said.
Beyond Council reform, Tinubu called for an immediate end to global warfare and rejected what he described as a rising tide of nationalism, warning that the global order hangs in the balance and urging a recommitment to the founding principles of the UN Charter.
“Nigeria stands by the Charter and its promise of a world in which diplomacy prevails over coercion, cooperation over isolation and international law over the arbitrary exercise of power,” he said.
He pointed to Nigeria’s peacekeeping record in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Darfur, Mali and The Gambia as evidence of the country’s readiness to take on greater responsibility in restoring peace across Africa, noting that Nigeria continues to advance mediation, democratic governance, counter-terrorism and maritime security through ECOWAS, the African Union and Gulf of Guinea partnerships.
On climate change, Tinubu rejected what he called a false choice between development and climate action, insisting developing countries must be allowed to industrialise and expand energy access through low-carbon pathways backed by technology transfer and climate finance.
He reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to the Paris Agreement, noting that Africa contributes under 4 percent of global emissions despite bearing a heavy climate burden, and said Nigeria is working toward net-zero emissions by 2060 under its Energy Transition Plan.
He also renewed Nigeria’s call for reform of the international financial architecture and wider access to concessional financing, noting that inadequate financing remains one of the greatest obstacles to sustainable development as many developing nations spend heavily on debt servicing at the expense of education, healthcare and infrastructure.
Drawing on Nigeria’s fight against Boko Haram and ISWAP, Tinubu said no nation, however strong its defences, can fully secure itself against threats sustained beyond its borders, adding that lasting victory over terrorism requires investment in education, economic opportunity, accountable governance and human rights.
On the war in Sudan and other conflicts, he called for urgent diplomacy to address their humanitarian and geopolitical consequences. “We should all be afraid of a world in which we can no longer tell the victim from the aggressor,” he said.
He closed by describing a reformed, inclusive UN as indispensable to a peaceful and sustainable future. “Whatever our differences, we must remember that humanity is our oldest citizenship, and peace is the inheritance we owe every child,” he said.
