India, Africa deserve fair global representation: Jaishankar
India and Africa cannot remain underrepresented in global decision-making, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said, calling for reform of the UN Security Council to make global governance more democratic and representative.
Addressing a gathering at the Adwa Victory Memorial Museum in Addis Ababa, he said the existing global order disregarded the interests of both sides and accused unnamed forces of delaying reform
“The current Council neither delivers effectively nor represents fairly. And the two shortcomings are clearly interconnected,” Jaishankar said, calling for Africa to be represented fairly in United Nations Security Council membership. Jaishankar arrived in Ethiopia from Cote d’Ivoire on the final leg of his three-nation African tour, which also included Ghana. Calling for a more representative international order, Jaishankar cited India’s efforts during its 2023 G20 presidency to secure permanent membership for the African Union and called for fair African representation in both categories of UN Security Council membership.
The UN Security Council has 15 members, including five permanent members — China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States — which hold veto powers, allowing any one of them to block a substantive resolution.
The remaining 10 non-permanent members are elected for two-year terms and do not have veto powers. Calls for reform include expanding the Council’s membership to give India, Africa and other underrepresented regions a greater role in global decision-making.
Jaishankar said India was Africa’s fourth-largest trading partner, with bilateral trade nearing $100 billion. More than 220 Indian-supported development projects worth approximately $4.5 billion had been completed across the continent, he said, adding that “development is best served by self-reliance”.
Jaishankar said Ethiopia’s victory over Italy at Adwa had inspired struggles against colonialism and racial domination across Africa and beyond.
