London: President John Dramani Mahama has renewed Ghana's advocacy for the United Nations reform to grant Africa permanent representation on the UN Security Council. He reiterated that it was a matter of global justice to rectify the continent's historical exclusion from the Council's decision-making process. The President made the call in his presentation delivered at the Chatham House in London, during which he shared Ghana's perspective on: 'Navigating a Changing Global Order: Ghana's Strategic Priorities'.
According to Ghana News Agency, President Mahama emphasized that global governance institutions must evolve to reflect comprehensive political realities rather than power structures of 1945. He argued that the international system could not sustain its legitimacy while significant portions of humanity remained structurally underrepresented in global decision-making. Africa, with 54 member states at the United Nations and a population projected to constitute nearly one quarter of humanity by 2050, continues to be excluded from permanent representation on the United Nations Security Council. Mahama described this exclusion as a historical injustice and a structural imbalance that undermines the credibility of the multilateral system.
President Mahama expressed Ghana's continued support for comprehensive reform of the United Nations system, including equitable representation for Africa on the Security Council. He acknowledged that although the post-1945 international order established important norms and institutions that provided relative global stability, it was not without imperfections and inequalities. The Charter of the United Nations advanced principles such as sovereign equality, territorial integrity, and the peaceful settlement of disputes, which laid the foundations for many formerly colonized nations, including Ghana, to secure independence and assert sovereignty.
However, President Mahama noted that these principles are increasingly being challenged. He highlighted the selective application of international law, erosion of multilateral consensus, and the growing tendency for strategic competition over collective responsibility. Conflicts across regions continue to test the credibility of the international system, revealing the fragility of institutions designed to uphold peace and stability. Furthermore, climate financing commitments remain unmet, and development assistance is contracting in many regions.
President Mahama stated that while the world is becoming technologically interconnected, it is also politically fragmented. For countries in the Global South, the central question is not whether the international order is changing, but how to navigate this transition with resilience, strategic clarity, and sovereign confidence. For Ghana, this transition demands purposeful engagement rather than retreat or passivity. The country's response to the changing global environment is anchored in four broad strategic priorities: reforming global governance, leading African integration, building balanced and mutually beneficial partnerships, and strengthening sovereign agency over its national development trajectory.