Africa deserve membership of the UN Security Council

Accra, April 15, GNA - Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, Minister of Foreign Affairs, said on Friday that Africa deserved a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council.

He said any UN Reforms worth the support of Africa should consider the need to appoint an Africa country and reverse the status quo, which he described as unacceptable.


"Africa has no interest in any proposal for reforms, which seeks to be variant of the status quo," Nana Akufo Addo stated at the opening of an international security think-tank conference in Accra.


The Conference on the theme: "The UN and Peace-building: African Perspective," would focus on the importance of peace-building, the modalities for the establishment of a Peace-building Commission, the role of regional organization in the UN's peace-building efforts and the perspective of West African Civil Society.


The two- day conference was co-sponsored by the Government of Ghana and Denmark and organized jointly by New York University Centre on International Cooperation, African Security Dialogue and Research and Conflict Security and Development Group of Kings College London. Experts from the academia, security agencies, journalists, civil society organizations and a cross section of the public are attending the conference.


Nana Akufo Addo said, "Our demand is full representation, which implies allocation of two permanent seats to Africa in the UN Security Council with all the responsibilities and privileges that comes with permanent membership, including the right of veto".

It is important to emphasis the fact that it was this insistence on full representation, which facilitated the achievement of the consensus, because the entire continent is virtually unanimous in the view that Africa has to seize the opportunity of the hour of reform and maximize her impact.


He said Ghana believes that Africa has date with destiny and is yet to play its full role in international relations. As we propagate our views on the proposed reforms, we should be conscious of the fact that the success of the negotiations would be determined by the extent to which other views are accommodated, whilst maintaining a common cohesion and unity.


Ghana's Foreign Affairs Minister said Africa cannot afford a crack in its united stance.


On the development of African peace building initiatives, Nana Akufo Addo said the establishment of a system, which provides for a focus on real sustainable political and economic development and an equitable distribution of national resources, as well as commitment to environmental security is paramount for peace building and eradication of poverty.