President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called for urgent reforms of the United Nations, warning that the global body risks losing credibility and relevance if it fails to reflect present-day realities.
Delivering Nigeria’s address at the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday through Vice President Kashim Shettima, President Tinubu said the UN must embrace “sweeping restructurings” to effectively address global challenges.
“The United Nations will recover its relevance only when it reflects the world as it is, not as it was,” he said, stressing Nigeria’s demand for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council as part of wider institutional reforms.
Tinubu criticised the organisation’s handling of global crises, describing the suffering in the Middle East and elsewhere as “stains on our collective humanity.” He reaffirmed Nigeria’s support for a two-state solution to the Israel–Palestine conflict, stating: “The people of Palestine are not collateral damage in a civilisation searching for order. They are human beings, equal in worth, entitled to the same freedoms and dignities that the rest of us take for granted.”
The President also proposed the creation of a global financial court to manage sovereign debt, arguing that developing nations need “a new and binding mechanism” to escape economic dependence on unprocessed exports. He insisted that debt relief must be treated not as charity but as a path to shared prosperity.
Positioning Africa at the centre of future economic stability, Tinubu highlighted the continent’s mineral wealth and called for fair partnerships that ensure local processing, investment, and jobs. “When we export raw materials, as we have been doing, tension, inequality and instability fester,” he warned.
On Nigeria’s domestic economy, the President acknowledged the hardship caused by recent reforms but described them as necessary to restore economic balance. “Our task is to enable and facilitate, and to trust in the ingenuity and enterprise of the people. But the process of transition is difficult,” he said.
Tinubu also stressed that defeating terrorism requires more than military action, emphasising that “values and ideas deliver the ultimate victory” in long-term struggles against violent extremism.
Reaffirming Nigeria’s commitment to peace, multilateralism, and human rights, the President urged world leaders to take decisive action. “We must make real change, change that works, and change that is seen to work. If we fail, the direction of travel is already predictable,” he cautioned.
