United States. 25 September 2025 – Kenyan President William Ruto has firmly stated that Africa must be allocated at least two permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council, describing it as a necessity rather than a favour.
In his Wednesday speech at the UN General Assembly, Ruto emphasized that reforming the Security Council is not an act of generosity toward Africa but a critical requirement for the body’s credibility and survival.
Ruto recalled that African leaders demanded, more than two decades ago, two permanent seats and five non-permanent seats for the continent.
However, he said, the demand has been consistently ignored, delayed, or subjected to endless debate, a situation he described as damaging to the UN’s legitimacy.
“You cannot claim to be the United Nations while ignoring the voices of 54 countries, it’s impossible,” Ruto said.
He stressed that Africa will no longer accept exclusion from global decision-making on peace, security, and development, describing the marginalization of the continent as “unacceptable, unjust, and dangerously lopsided,” threatening the reputation of the UN itself.
Ruto highlighted that Africa is often the main subject of Security Council debates, contributes the largest numbers of peacekeeping troops, and suffers the highest toll from instability, yet remains the only continent without a permanent seat at the table where decisions about its future are made.
He called for Africa to be allocated at least two permanent seats with full veto power and two additional non-permanent seats, reiterating that reform of the Security Council is indispensable.
“The world must understand that reforming the Security Council is not about doing a favour to Africa or any other region. It is a necessity for the UN’s survival if it wishes to remain relevant,” Ruto added.
Currently, Africa and South America are the only continents without permanent representation on the UN Security Council, despite Africa being the continent with the largest number of countries.