Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Jimoh Ibrahim, has expressed confidence that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will soon secure a permanent seat for Nigeria on the United Nations Security Council, describing the move as one of the President’s major foreign policy priorities.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television on Thursday, Ibrahim said President Tinubu has consistently argued that Africa deserves permanent representation on the Security Council, stressing that Nigeria is well-positioned to occupy such a seat.
According to the Nigerian envoy, the President has repeatedly questioned why no African nation has been admitted as a permanent member of the council despite the continent’s growing influence in global affairs.He noted that Tinubu has used several international platforms, including his speeches at the United Nations, to advocate for reforms that would expand the Security Council and give Africa permanent representation.”His major argument is why the United Nations has not admitted any African country into the permanent seat of the Security Council. This worries him a lot,” Ibrahim said.”
He has consistently made it clear in his speeches that he is not satisfied with the current structure of the Security Council, particularly the exclusion of Africa and Nigeria.”The United Nations Security Council currently consists of 15 members. Five countries—China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States—hold permanent seats and possess veto powers over substantive resolutions. The remaining 10 members are elected to serve two-year non-permanent terms.
Nigeria has previously served five times as a non-permanent member of the council, with its most recent tenure running from 2014 to 2015. Successive Nigerian governments have maintained that the country’s large population, economic significance, leadership role in Africa, and contributions to UN peacekeeping operations make it deserving of permanent membership.
Ibrahim acknowledged that changing the structure of the Security Council would not be easy because it was created about 80 years ago, long before many African nations, including Nigeria, gained independence. He explained that any amendment to the council’s composition requires broad international consensus.Despite these challenges, the ambassador expressed optimism that ongoing global discussions on UN reforms would eventually produce a breakthrough.”The good news is I can assure you that President Tinubu will secure a Security Council seat very soon,” Ibrahim stated confidently.
He further disclosed that President Tinubu has discussed the issue with Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama as part of wider diplomatic engagements aimed at strengthening Africa’s collective voice in international affairs. Mahama was recently recognized for his role in championing efforts that culminated in the United Nations declaring the transatlantic slave trade one of the gravest crimes against humanity. As calls for reforms of the United Nations continue to gain momentum, Nigeria remains among the leading African countries pushing for a more inclusive Security Council that reflects today’s global political realities.
