Nigeria links UN reform push to minerals and investment drive
Nigeria used the 81st UN General Assembly to renew its demand for permanent African representation on the Security Council while promoting partnerships in minerals, education and investment. The country also signed a minerals cooperation memorandum with the United States, though the agreement does not itself create new projects or jobs.
Nigeria presented its engagement at the 81st United Nations General Assembly as both a diplomatic campaign and an economic outreach effort, according to Channels Television. President Bola Tinubu, represented at the General Assembly by Vice President Kashim Shettima, renewed Nigeria’s call for reform of the Security Council and permanent African representation. Tinubu said the distribution of power should reflect the world of 2026 rather than that of 1945, and said Nigeria supported a multilateral system based on diplomacy, cooperation and international law.
The report said United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres also described Africa’s continued exclusion from permanent Security Council membership as unjust and indefensible. It noted, however, that reform remained a wider multilateral process and was not secured by this year’s General Assembly. Nigeria also promoted greater domestic value from its natural resources.
On the summit’s sidelines, Solid Minerals Development Minister Dele Alake and US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau signed a memorandum covering geological data, exploration, mineral development and processing, infrastructure and technical capacity. Alake said Nigeria did not want to remain only a source of raw materials, but sought local processing, skills, jobs and opportunities for Nigerian businesses. Channels Television reported that the memorandum creates a framework for cooperation; it does not itself mean factories, processing plants or jobs have already been created.
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