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Amid the ongoing 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, United States (US), the Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, has outlined steps to strengthen peace, development, and human rights across the globe.
Shettima, who spoke at the general debate of the UNGA on Wednesday, said that to achieve peace and development, Nigeria must have a permanent seat at the UN Security Council.
According to the Nigerian leader, this should take place as part of a wider process of institutional reform, adding that urgent action is needed to promote sovereign debt relief and access to trade and financing and countries that host minerals must benefit from those minerals.
Over the years, Africa, despite being rich in natural and human resources, has remained underrepresented in global decision-making platforms like the United Nations Security Council.
Nigeria, as Africa’s most populous nation and a regional power, has long advocated for permanent representation to correct this imbalance.
He stressed that the digital divide must close, maintaining that A. I must stand for ‘Africa Included’.
“On my first point: the United Nations will recover its relevance only when it reflects the world as it is, not as it was. Nigeria’s journey tells this story with clarity: when the UN was founded, we were a colony of 20 million people, absent from the tables where decisions about our fate were taken; today, we are a sovereign nation of over 236 million, projected to be the third most populous country in the world, with one of the youngest and most dynamic populations on earth.
“A stabilising force in regional security and a consistent partner in global peacekeeping, our case for a permanent seat at the Security Council is a demand for fairness, for representation, and for reform that restores credibility to the very institution upon which the hope of multilateralism rests.
“This is why Nigeria stands firmly behind the UN80 Initiative of the Secretary-General, and the resolution adopted by this Assembly on 18 July 2025, a bold step to reform the wider United Nations system for greater relevance, efficiency, and effectiveness in the face of unprecedented financial strain.
‘We support the drive to rationalise structures and end the duplication of responsibilities and programmes, so that this institution may speak with one voice and act with greater coherence,” he added.
According to him, no country can achieve a peaceful world in isolation, saying that this is the heavy burden of sovereignty.
“Sovereignty is a covenant of shared responsibility, a recognition that our survival is bound to the survival of others. To live up to this charge, we must walk hand in hand with our neighbours and partners.
“We must follow the trails of weapons, of money, and of people. For these forces, too often driven by faceless non-state actors, ignite the fires of conflict across our region.
“Nigeria’s soldiers and civilians carry a proud legacy. They have participated in 51 out of 60 United Nations peacekeeping operations since our independence in 1960. We have stood with our partners in Africa to resolve conflicts, and we continue that commitment today through the Multinational Joint Task Force.
“At home, we confront the scourge of insurgency with resolve. From this long and difficult struggle with violent extremism, one truth stands clear: military tactics may win battles measured in months and years, but in wars that span generations, it is values and ideas that deliver the ultimate victory,” he averred.
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