UNGA81: Why has Africa’s Security Council reform push remained unresolved?

Africa’s push for permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council returned to the spotlight at the 81st UN General Assembly, where leaders reiterated long-standing demands that the Council’s permanent membership be updated to reflect present-day geopolitics. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres used his final General Assembly address to call again for reform to make the Council more representative. Nigeria’s vice president and Ghana’s president both urged changes that would give the continent assured permanent representation.

The campaign highlights enduring frustration that no African country holds a permanent seat on the 15-member Council, even though a large share of Security Council business involves the continent. In 2025 the Council adopted 44 resolutions, 24 under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, and 18 of those Chapter VII resolutions concerned Africa. African governments and experts argue that this workload makes the lack of permanent African membership difficult to justify.

Efforts to change the Council have been under way in some form since 2008 via intergovernmental negotiations covering size, membership categories, regional representation and the veto. Yet those talks have not produced agreement on core questions. Any amendment that adds permanent members would also require revision of the UN Charter under Article 108, which needs approval by two-thirds of the General Assembly and ratification by two-thirds of UN members, including all five current permanent members—giving the existing P5 a decisive role in any outcome.

Beyond the question of expansion, negotiators face the contentious issue of powers for any new permanent members. The African Union’s Ezulwini Consensus calls for new African permanent members to receive the same rights as current permanent members, including the veto for as long as it remains part of the Council’s system. Critics and some analysts point to institutional incentives to preserve the status quo: appointment processes for posts such as the UN secretary-general already depend on P5 agreement, and the P5’s existing prerogatives shape Council practice, from penholder roles to mission leadership.

Which African states would occupy potential new permanent seats is also unresolved. Nigeria has repeatedly positioned itself as a candidate and reiterated its demand at this year’s General Assembly. Egypt and South Africa have also advanced their own claims, but the African Union has not designated specific countries; its common position reserves that decision for the AU while calling for at least two permanent and five non-permanent seats for the continent on an expanded Council.