Japan has pledged to employ its position on the Security Council of the international organisation to advocate for an African seat at the UN—saying that the African country has been mistreated even up till now.
‘Japan reiterates its determination to redress the historical injustice against Africa of not being represented through a permanent membership on the Security Council,’ Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told the Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Tunis, Tunisia on Sunday.’
‘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,’ he said.
According to him, the United Nations thus has come ‘Face–to–face with the truth’
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Africa Daily News, New York reports that Japan was one of the five nations chosen in June to have a non-permanent seat on the UNSC for a two-year period from 2023–2024.
The United States, Russia, China, France, and the United Kingdom are the five permanent members of the UNSC, which has 15 members total.
Five of the other 10 seats, which are occupied by nations for two-year terms, are announced annually.
After testing positive for COVID-19 a few days prior, Kishida spoke on live television from Tokyo and reaffirmed a Saturday commitment to invest $30 billion in Africa over the following three years, while also offering smaller amounts for food security in collaboration with the African Development Bank.
The UN’s weather service last week issued a warning about an “unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe” in the Horn of Africa due to a protracted case of droughts, he further said Japan will designate a special ambassador there.
Kishida announced that Japan would invest $8.3 million in the volatile Liptako-Gourma tri-border region between Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, which is rich in gold but has recently been devastated by armed militia assault.
According to him, the assistance will work to “develop good cooperation between residents and local authorities” and will enable the region’s five million citizens to receive better administrative services.
Announcing Japan’s backing for the rule of law in Africa, the Japanese leader further pledged fundings for the training of police personnel and for “fair and transparent” elections throughout the continent.
