Ruto pushes for UN reforms, demands Permanent Security Council seats

The President said the UN must evolve to reflect modern realities rather than post-war power arrangements of 1945

by PERPETUA ETYANG

News24 September 2025 - 20:50

In Summary

Ruto told the world leaders that the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration, adopted two decades ago, had already established Africa’s common position on reform.
He said the demand had been ignored and endlessly debated, to the detriment of global governance.

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President William Ruto has renewed calls for sweeping reforms at the United Nations, warning that Africa’s continued exclusion from permanent membership of the Security Council undermines the body’s credibility.

The President said the UN must evolve to reflect modern realities rather than the post-war power arrangements of 1945.

Speaking at the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Ruto noted that despite Africa’s heavy involvement in peacekeeping and its centrality on the Council’s agenda, the continent remains the only region without permanent representation.

“Africa deserves two permanent seats with full rights, including the veto, and two additional non-permanent seats on the UN Security Council. Africa’s exclusion is not only unacceptable, unfair, and grossly unjust; it also undermines the very credibility of the United Nations,” he said.

Ruto told the world leaders that the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration, adopted two decades ago, had already established Africa’s common position on reform.

He said the demand had been ignored and endlessly debated, to the detriment of global governance.

“You cannot claim to be the United Nations while disregarding the voice of 54 nations,” he said.

The President said that Africa was no longer willing to wait on the margins as decisions about its peace, security, and development were made without its input.

He stressed that reforming the Security Council was not a favour to Africa but a necessity for the UN’s survival.

“Eight decades ago, the founders of the UN sought to correct the failures of the League by creating a stronger, more inclusive organisation, anchored in the principle of “We the peoples of the United Nations, determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war,” he said.

“Today, as we gather for the UN@80, the question is unavoidable: Is the United Nations relevant to the demands of our time? Can it continue to serve humanity in the face of current realities? Or has it become a relic of a bygone era.”

He pointed out that Africa contributes some of the largest contingents to UN peacekeeping missions and bears the heaviest costs of instability.

Ruto said the 80th anniversary of the United Nations should not be a mere commemoration but a turning point.

“Let us seize this moment to reimagine and rebuild the UN into a body that commands legitimacy, responds with speed, and delivers justice for all,” he urged.

Kenya, he added, stood ready to support reforms that would restore the organisation’s relevance and ensure its decisions reflect the realities of the 21st century.