Dammu Ravi, Secretary of Economic Relations in India’s Ministry of External Affairs, has urged for a reform of the UN Security Council.
Ravi also underlined the critical need to modernise global governance structures to reflect current realities. Ravi addressed a press conference in Abuja on Sunday.
The briefing followed India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Nigeria.
Ravi stated that the current system, which was formed in 1945, no longer serves the needs of the modern world and that considerable modifications are necessary.
Ravi emphasised India and Nigeria’s same stance in lobbying for a more inclusive Security Council, noting that both countries reflect the interests of the Global South, which is still under-represented in international decision-making.
The secretary said, “The world has changed significantly since the establishment of the UN, but the Security Council’s structure has not evolved accordingly.
“Nigeria and India are on the same page on the need for reform. We have to keep working on that in different forums to sensitise the countries on the need for our positions.”
The request for reform was part of a larger movement by developing countries to gain a stronger role in global governance.
Ravi emphasised the necessity of collaboration among nations in the Global South, particularly significant actors such as India and Nigeria, in advocating effectively for changes in the UNSC composition.
The UN Security Council now has 15 members, including five permanent members with veto power: the US, Russia, China, the UK, and France.
Despite having 54 member nations in the United Nations, Africa lacks permanent representation.
The United States recently proposed extending the council to include two permanent seats for African countries, with Nigeria, South Africa, and Egypt emerging as frontrunners due to their economic and political clout.
According to Ravi, the key to successful reform is collective action.
He argued that countries from the Global South, which have undergone significant political and economic progress in recent decades, should play a larger part in international decision-making.
He said, “We need to build this understanding that there is a need for UN reform, and that is fundamental. The reform is necessary, and it has to be done quickly.”
In response to the subject of African representation, Ravi stated that Africa is united in its belief that reform is necessary.
However, he highlighted the difficulty of aligning the perspectives of many African countries with those of other countries pressing for change, such as India.
Nigeria recently received the support of many West African states in its bid for a permanent membership on the UN Security Council.
The endorsement came after the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, toured Togo, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, and Guinea-Bissau to rally support for the proposal.
