Tinubu renews Nigeria’s push for two permanent UN Security Council seats with veto power for Africa, alongside five non-permanent seats
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu renewed Nigeria’s call for two permanent African seats on the United Nations Security Council with veto powers in New York on Thursday, 24 September 2026, as Vice President Kashim Shettima delivered Tinubu’s address to the 81st UN General Assembly and argued that Africa can no longer remain outside the council’s permanent membership.
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The demand places Nigeria at the centre of a longstanding African campaign to reshape the UN Security Council, whose five permanent members are China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Tinubu’s position, delivered by Shettima, was that the structure created after the Second World War does not adequately reflect the political and economic realities of 2026.
“The reform of this institution must begin with the reconstitution of the Security Council, for the world of 2026 cannot remain captive to the distribution of power in 1945,” Tinubu said.
“Africa cannot continue to fill the Council’s agenda while remaining absent from its permanent membership.”
Nigeria is seeking at least two permanent seats for Africa, with the same rights and responsibilities as the existing permanent members, including veto power for as long as the veto remains part of the Council’s system.
The country is also calling for five non-permanent African seats on an expanded council. The proposal follows the African Union’s common position under the Ezulwini Consensus and Sirte Declaration.
That means the latest intervention is not a new Nigerian request created by Tinubu’s administration. It is Nigeria’s renewed backing for an established continental position.
The African Union reaffirmed the position in May, saying Africa should have no fewer than two permanent seats with full prerogatives, including the veto while it exists, as well as five non-permanent seats.
The AU has described the lack of permanent African representation as a historical imbalance and has called for stronger international support for reform.
Nigeria’s argument also rests on its record in international and regional security operations.
In his address, Shettima pointed to Nigerian participation in peacekeeping and stabilisation efforts in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Darfur, Mali and The Gambia.
Nigeria also highlighted its involvement through the Economic Community of West African States, the African Union and Gulf of Guinea partnerships in areas including mediation, democratic governance, counter-terrorism and maritime security.
The message from Abuja is therefore broader than a request for a seat. Nigeria is arguing that countries that contribute personnel, resources and diplomatic effort to international peace should have a stronger role in decisions on global security.
The timing is also significant.
The Security Council is under renewed scrutiny over whether its composition reflects the contemporary international system.
Other countries have separately called for changes to the council, although they do not necessarily agree on the role of the veto or the shape of an expanded membership.
For Africa, the central issue is representation.
The continent has no permanent seat despite being heavily affected by many of the conflicts and security crises considered by the Security Council.
The AU’s position is that African representation should be permanent and should carry the same privileges attached to existing permanent membership.
For Nigeria, the argument also carries a diplomatic dimension.
A permanent African presence would give the continent a direct role in decisions concerning international peace and security rather than requiring African interests to be advanced through elected, non-permanent membership.
Tinubu also used the UN address to broaden Nigeria’s international agenda beyond Security Council reform.
Nigeria called for greater access to concessional financing, reforms to the international financial system and debt frameworks that better accommodate developing economies.
The government also promoted climate finance, peacebuilding and the African Continental Free Trade Area as part of a wider argument for a more equitable international system.
Climate change and artificial intelligence also featured in the address, with Nigeria calling for greater support for developing countries and responsible use of emerging technologies.
But the Security Council demand remains the most politically significant element of Nigeria’s UN intervention.
The immediate obstacle is that changing the permanent membership of the Security Council requires broad international agreement and formal amendment of the UN Charter.
The five existing permanent members also hold veto powers, making reform a particularly difficult diplomatic process.
Nigeria’s renewed demand therefore begins another phase of a much longer campaign rather than immediately changing the composition of the council.
For Tinubu, the message is that Africa should not simply participate in implementing international decisions. The continent should have a permanent place in making them.
For the African Union, the demand remains part of a collective position developed over decades.
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And for Nigeria, the latest UN intervention represents a renewed effort to translate its regional peacekeeping role and diplomatic influence into a stronger voice within the institutions that shape global security.
