Nigeria has secured the backing of some West African countries including The Gambia to clinch a permanent seat at the United Nations Security Council.
The UN Security Council, established in 1945, currently has 15 members — five permanent members (the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and France) with veto power, and 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms without veto power.
Africa, despite having 54 member states in the UN, does not have any permanent representation in the council.
The United States has proposed adding two permanent seats for African countries on the Security Council and Nigeria, South Africa and Egypt are the strong contenders for a permanent seat.
These countries are frequently highlighted due to their economic, political, and diplomatic influence on the continent but the final decision will likely involve extensive negotiations within the African Union and among UN member states.
Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, told a press conference in Abuja that he had recently led a delegation to Togo, Cote D’Ivoire, Gambia and Guinea Bissau to solicit their support for the country in its bid to get one of the permanent seats for Africa at the UN security council.
“Everywhere we went, we had the opportunity to discuss and solicit support for Nigeria’s intention to become a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council because this is something that is a hot topic at the moment and all the countries we visited said they are in the same region but they know there is no other country that is best suited, best qualified to speak on behalf of the continent more than Nigeria and they assured us of their support when the time comes.
“Some volunteered even to start doing that groundwork right away and the second issue we discussed was the opening that exists in the International Court of Justice where Nigeria is presenting its candidate, Femi Elias and again all countries we visited. All assured us of their support for Nigeria.”
