Japan To Push For Africa's Seat On UN Security Council

Japan will push for an African seat at the United Nations by using its place on the world body’s Security Council.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told the Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Tunis, Tunisia on Sunday; “Japan reiterates its determination to redress the historical injustice against Africa of not being represented through a permanent membership on the Security Council.

“In order for the UN to work effectively for peace and stability, there is an urgent need to strengthen the UN as a whole through Security Council reform."

Kishida also reiterated a pledge announced to invest some $30 billion in Africa over the next three years, promising smaller sums for food security in coordination with the African Development Bank.

He also announced Japan would appoint a special envoy to the Horn of Africa, where a long drought has prompted the UN’s weather agency to warn of an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.

In June, Japan was one of the five countries elected to hold a non-permanent seat on the UNSC for the years 2023 and 2024.

The UNSC is made up of 15 members, five of whom are permanent and have veto-wielding power: the United States, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom.