The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, has campaigned for Africa to be a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, while defending Nigeria's suitability to represent Africa at the world body.
A statement by Special Assistant on Media and Communication Strategy, Alkasim Abdulkadir, quoting the Minister speaking during a panel discussion on the topic “Africa's Momentum” at the World Economic Forum summit in Davos, Switzerland, stated that Tuggar denounced the exclusion of Africa in the UN Security Council, although he points out that around 60 percent of the Council's resolutions refer to issues that have to do with Africa.
“However, Africa does not have a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. He also noted that many of the laws enacted by the Council have adverse implications for Africa, including the Deforestation Law, which prohibits the purchase of products from deforested land in Africa and ignores the technology companies that produce the machinery that enables deforestation in the continent. “
He further revealed that Nigeria's global outlook under the administration of President Bola Tinubu is based on the accentuation of Nigeria's strategic autonomy and the principle of non-alignment in its relations with the rest of the world.
The debate, which featured other African leaders including Tunisia's Foreign Minister Mohammed Ali Nafti; the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Therese Kayikwamba Wagner; and Ugandan Finance Minister Matia Kasaija was moderated by Chatham House Director Bronwen Maddox.
The conversation also highlighted Africa's role in global governance and the implications of the first G20 Summit of 2025 scheduled to be held in South Africa.
Minister Tuggar posited: “The G20 summit in South Africa presents us with an opportunity to make a strong case, in the event that Nigeria becomes a member of the G20 and of course South Africa is a brotherly neighbour, we have strong ties.”
He also highlighted the important role played by Nigeria not only in supporting South Africa's liberation from apartheid but also in providing asylum to Thabo Mbeki during the years of South Africa's struggle for liberation.
Listing Nigeria’s strengths and qualifications and why it should lead Africa on the world stage, the Minister opined: “It is important for a country like Nigeria to be a member of the G20 because we are used to defending Africa, we have a lot of goodwill; “We have soft power.”
He also highlighted Nigeria's historical contribution to the struggles for the liberation of Africa and the fight against racist regimes on the continent.
Tuggar also revealed that as part of its soft powers, Nigeria, through its Technical Assistance Corps, sends volunteer professionals, including doctors, engineers and university professors, to other countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific to support their development. . He further stated that Nigeria is a non-threatening power, friendly to its neighbors and has no territorial or border disputes. When these issues arise, in most cases they are resolved with Nigeria yielding to its neighbors.
He was enthusiastic that Nigeria's non-threatening nature has earned the trust of its neighbors who support Nigeria to represent them globally. Minister Tuggar added that Nigeria is the only African country with a permanent seat on the African Union Peace and Security Council.
Furthermore, Minister Tuggar said it is important for Nigeria to be at the table because the G20 was created to review global economic and financial issues, such as the use of Special Drawing Rights to finance the energy transition in Africa.
He called for a return to the promises made by developed nations to developing countries during the Rio Summit regarding technology transfer, which he said has remained silent and Nigeria, using its great strong voice, can move to foreground as a member of the G20.
Responding to what Nigeria would do with the G20 seat, Tuggar stated that Nigeria would advocate for reconsideration of Special Drawing Rights and push for consolidation of global tax reforms which he said were championed by African countries at the United Nations. United together with Nigeria. leading the charge, to make the tax system fairer for countries in the Global South.
Regarding Nigeria's expectations from South Africa at the G20 summit, the Minister opined that South Africa can make a strong case for justice, for the process to be more representative and more democratic.
He criticized the argument that because Africa is already represented by the African Union and South Africa, it should not demand more representation, citing South America whose representation does not attract the same reaction as Africa.
He emphasized that Africa should not be seen as a single country but as a continent with 54 countries, highlighting that Nigeria has more than 220 million inhabitants and has a potential to increase to 400 million by 2050 and become the third largest population in the world.
Minister Tuggar said Nigeria deserves to be represented given its track record, the size of its economy and many other factors. He said he hoped South Africa would support Nigeria's case, adding that Nigeria was already being invited as an observer.