President John Dramani Mahama has criticised the current structure of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), calling it outdated and unrepresentative of modern global realities.
Speaking at the 2025 Munich Security Conference in Germany on 14 February 2025, the Ghanaian leader urged for structural reforms, particularly the expansion of permanent membership to ensure more inclusive representation.
“I think that the UN itself has carried out many reforms in terms of trying to increase efficiencies that it has, but one place that has remained static, archaic, and moribund is the Security Council,” he said.
He pointed out that while developing nations have long pushed for change, the Council’s structure has largely remained unchanged, failing to reflect shifting geopolitical dynamics.
Mr Mahama also argued that the veto power should not hinder reforms, stating: “The veto should not be a stumbling block to adding new permanent members to the Security Council.”
He further called for stronger collaboration between the UN and African regional organisations to improve peace, security, and economic development.
“In order that they can respond to these challenges, the UN becomes more relevant even today in a fragmented world, because when there is fragmentism we need more multilateralism, more global cooperation,” he said.
