United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called for reform of the UN Security Council to make the body more reflective of the current global order, describing Africa’s continued absence from its permanent membership as “unjust and indefensible.”
Guterres made the call on Tuesday in his opening address at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. The speech came as world leaders gathered for the annual high-level debate.
He said the Security Council was created in the aftermath of the Second World War, but the world had changed fundamentally since then, a shift he said was not adequately reflected in the composition of the council.
“We must also reform the Security Council so that it reflects today’s world with the legitimacy and effectiveness that today’s challenges demand.
“The Security Council was designed in the aftermath of the Second World War. But, the world has fundamentally changed since then. A change that is far from reflected in the Security Council.
“The most stunning example is Africa. When the UN was founded, most of Africa was still under colonial rule. Today, Africa still has no permanent representation on the Council. A twenty-first century Security Council without permanent African seats is unjust and indefensible. This must change,” Guterres said.
The Security Council is the UN body responsible for maintaining international peace and security. It has 15 members — five permanent members and 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms.
The five permanent members are China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States. They have veto power, meaning any one of them can block the adoption of a substantive resolution even when it has secured the required majority.
Africa has long pushed for reform of the Security Council, arguing that the continent is under-represented in a body whose decisions have significant implications for international peace and security, including conflicts on the continent.
Under its common position on Security Council reform, the African Union is seeking at least two permanent seats with full privileges, including the veto if it is retained, and five non-permanent seats.
The AU has maintained that the reform should address what it describes as the historical under-representation of Africa in the Council and bring its composition in line with present-day geopolitical realities.
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