President John Dramani Mahama has emphasised the necessity of granting Africa a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, citing the current global governance system as outdated and inequitable.
Speaking at the 80th United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, September 25, 2025, President Mahama reiterated a long-standing request.
“Thirty years after Mandela made this same request, we are still asking: if not now, then when?” he stated.
He further observed, “The most powerful post-World War II nations are still being rewarded with an almost totalitarian guardianship over the rest of the world,” arguing that if the system were truly representative, a continent as expansive and populous as Africa, with its numerous UN Member States, would have at least one permanent seat.
Additionally, the Ghanaian leader challenged the unchecked veto power held by the five permanent members of the Security Council.
He asserted that a mechanism should be established for the General Assembly to contest a veto. “There must be a mechanism for the General Assembly to challenge a veto. No single nation should be able to exercise an absolute veto to serve its own interests in a conflict,” he argued.
President Mahama insisted that Africa’s demand for inclusion has been overlooked for three decades, concluding his address by declaring, “So, today, Madam President, I stand here in this exact spot, asking: if not now, then when?”
The President also called for a “reset of the global financial architecture,” believing the current system is being manipulated to the disadvantage of Africa, thereby depriving the continent of fair representation within multilateral financial institutions.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana