United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has voiced strong concerns over the absence of a permanent African member on the UN Security Council, stating that the world body cannot continue to accept this exclusion.
Guterres emphasized that a continent with a population exceeding one billion should not be left out of the Council’s core decision-making process.
In a statement on his X handle on Tuesday, Guterres stressed the importance of integrating African perspectives into the Council’s deliberations and actions. He highlighted that the composition of the Security Council has remained unchanged since its formation in 1945, despite significant global shifts.
“The Security Council was designed by the victors of World War II. The world has changed, but the composition of the Council has not kept pace,” Guterres noted.
“We can’t accept that there is no permanent member representing Africa—a continent of well over a billion people. African voices, insights, and participation must be brought to bear across the Council’s deliberations and actions.”
According to the UN’s official information, the Security Council is responsible for maintaining international peace and security. It consists of 15 members, each with one vote. However, only five countries—China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States—hold permanent seats with veto power.
The remaining 10 seats are occupied by non-permanent members, distributed among African, Asian, Eastern European, Latin American, Western European, and other states. African and Asian nations share five slots, Eastern Europe has one, Latin America has two, and Western Europe and other states have two.
Under the UN Charter, all Member States must comply with the Council’s decisions. The Security Council leads efforts to identify threats to peace and can impose sanctions or authorize the use of force to maintain or restore international stability.
Currently, Algeria, Sierra Leone, and Mozambique are the African nations represented on the Council, with their terms set to end in 2025. Non-permanent members serve two-year terms, contributing to the ongoing rotation of global representation on the Council.
