Vice President Kashim Shettima has declared that Africa’s continued exclusion from permanent membership on the United Nations Security Council undermines the fairness, credibility, and legitimacy of global governance.

?Speaking during a bilateral meeting with UN Deputy Secretary-General Hajiya Amina Mohammed on the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly in New York, Shettima stressed that international institutions must adapt to modern geopolitical and demographic realities.

?“A continent cannot be summoned to bear the burdens of the international order and then denied an equal hand in directing it,” Shettima stated, reiterating Nigeria’s support for comprehensive UN reforms to foster global trust, defend international law, and combat hunger, violence, and exclusion.

?The Vice President commended UN Secretary-General António Guterres for advocating for a more representative council and declaring the absence of permanent African representation as “unjust and indefensible.” He further praised Guterres for defending human dignity and international law amid escalating global conflicts, cautioning world leaders not to allow diplomacy to overshadow the human toll of war.

?Shettima also commended Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed for her exemplary contributions to multilateral diplomacy and sustainable development, describing her leadership as a point of pride for Nigeria.

?In response, Mohammed expressed gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Nigerian delegation for their ongoing support of her office and the United Nations, describing the visit as a profound honor.

?The Vice President was accompanied to the meeting by Governors Abdulrahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara), Hyacinth Alia (Benue), Siminalayi Fubara (Rivers), and Dauda Lawal (Zamfara), along with Foreign Affairs Minister Amb. Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu and Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Amb. Jimoh Ibrahim.