Africa Watch: Will Africa Finally Get a Better Seat at the Table?

For decades, Africa has called for greater representation at the United Nations Security Council, the body responsible for some of the world’s most consequential decisions on international peace and security. 

The Council currently has 15 members, including five permanent members with veto power. Africa has no permanent seat. The African Union’s Common African Position calls for at least two permanent seats for Africa, with the full privileges of permanent membership, including veto rights for as long as the veto exists, as well as five non-permanent seats in an expanded Council. 

The AU argues that a system created in 1945 should better reflect today’s geopolitical realities.

But expanding the Council raises a bigger question: what happens to the veto? UN member states are currently discussing several possibilities, including extending veto rights to new permanent members, not extending them, deciding on the issue through a future review, or abolishing the veto altogether. 

For Africa, there is another unresolved issue: which countries would occupy the continent’s permanent seats, and how would they be selected? As negotiations continue, the debate is not simply about adding chairs around the table; it is about who gets meaningful influence when decisions affecting global peace and security are made.

In this episode of Africa Watch, Daniel Arapmoi walks you through what Africa requests when it comes to the reform of the UN Security Council.

Credit List:

Executive Producers: Sun Lan, Wang Haiyang

Reporter: Daniel Arap Moi

Planning Editor: Matthias Muindi

Digital Editor: Tracy Omballa

Cameraman: Orto Sori

Graphic Designer: Frank Ojoo

Video Editor: John Njeri

Creative Designer: Bemnet Goitom