President Nana Akufo-Addo has called on fellow Heads of State and governments to insist on immediate reforms at the Security Council to conform with the growing trends of the day.
Taking his turn to deliver his address at the 78th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, President Akufo-Addo said it is long overdue to correct the longstanding injustice that the current structure and composition of the UN Security Council represent for the nations of Africa.
According to him, “After serving on the Council at this difficult time in the world, our views on the need for reform have been even more strongly re-asserted.”
He told the gathering of world leaders that, the UN in its current shape “cannot continue to preach democracy, equality and good governance around the globe; we cannot insist on peace and justice in the world, when our global organisation is seen by the majority of its members and the people of the world as hampered by an unjust and unfair structure.”
With Ghana currently serving out the second of her two-year term on the Security Council as a non-permanent member, President Akufo-Addo expressed disappointment at the fact that African countries, “have witnessed, at first hand, over and over again, that the big powers of the United Nations might be preaching democracy, fairness and justice around the world, but are happy to practice the opposite here at the UN, prioritising parochial interests over those of humanity.”
He expressed doubtless belief that with all that has been proudly achieved in its 78 years of existence, African countries still have to deal with “the reluctance by the nations, organisations and the major powers at the formation of the organisation, to agree to any reform to reflect present realities has led to the undermining of the credibility of the United Nations and some of its organs, in particular the Security Council.”
Referring to his maiden speech as President of Ghana at the United Nations General Assembly, he said, “I spoke at length on the need for reform of the United Nations and of the Security Council in particular. “
“I said, then, that the urgent need to reform this Organisation had been talked about and scheduled for a long time, but, somehow, we have never found the courage and the will to execute it. I said, then, that Ghana supports UN Reform, especially of the Security Council, as set out in Africa’s Common Position on UN Reform, based on the Ezulwini Consensus,” he continued.
Concluding, he stressed that, “if the Assembly has quite properly chosen the rebuilding of trust as critical in restoring stability and prosperity to our world,” “it cannot rebuild that trust when the organisation that should bind us is seen by many as helping to perpetuate an unfair world order, which is reinforced by an inequitable, dysfunctional global financial architecture.”
