Odimmegwa Johnpeter/Abuja
Nigeria has advocated for the immediate restructuring of global governance, asserting that the current international system is outdated and unfairly excludes the African continent.
Ambassador Dunoma Umar Ahmed, Permanent Secretary of Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated this in his speech at the 18th BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi on May 15, 2026. According to the Permanent Secretary, the exclusion of Africa’s 1.4 billion people from permanent representation on the UN Security Council is “neither justifiable nor sustainable.”
Representing Nigeria as a BRICS Partner Country, Ambassador Ahmed signalled the nation’s readiness to take a central role on the world stage.
His words: ”Nigeria stands prepared to assume this responsibility. We are ready to represent Africa’s voice with integrity, balance, and strength.”
He noted that the multilateral system, once a pillar of stability, is currently facing “existential challenges” driven by:
Ahmed also disclosesthat Geoeconomic rivalry is destabilizing global trade, stressing that
persistent technological divides threaten to leave the Global South behind.
His address highlighted a deep strategic alignment with the BRICS core mission of fostering a multipolar world. Ahmed emphasized that the global financial system must be overhauled to provide emerging economies with a “stronger and more credible voice.”
”The multilateral system must be renewed to serve the interests of all nations, not a privileged few,” Ahmed told the gathered delegates.
The Ambassador also linked Nigeria’s domestic agenda—under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu—to these international goals. He cited Nigeria’s bold economic reforms and its leadership in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as evidence of the country’s commitment to “leading by example.”
The statement concluded with a plea for collective action among BRICS nations and international organizations like the African Union and ECOWAS. Ahmed stressed that the choices made today would determine whether global governance remains a relic of the past or evolves into a “true instrument of peace, fairness, and progress.”
By positioning itself as the natural candidate for a permanent seat on the Security Council, Nigeria has reaffirmed its status as a leading diplomatic force in the Global South, demanding a seat at the table where the world’s most critical decisions are made.
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