On 31 December 2006, Kofi Annan completed his second term at the head of the United Nations. No African has held the office since. In the race for the next UN Secretary-General, President Macky Sall's candidacy raises again the question of Africa's place at the top.
Nine Secretaries-General have served since 1946. Two came from Africa: Egypt's Boutros Boutros-Ghali (1992-1996) and Ghana's Kofi Annan (1997-2006). Yet the continent is home to 54 of the Organisation's 193 member states and some 1.5 billion people. A large share of the Security Council's agenda concerns Africa.
The argument concerns representation rather than a turn that would fall mechanically to one region. An organisation that reflects the world it serves gains legitimacy and is better heard. That is the meaning of President Macky Sall's candidacy: Africa at its heart, the world in its sights.
To make that case, President Macky Sall points to twelve years leading a stable democratic state and to the chairmanship of a continental organisation in 2022, in the midst of global crises. He has kept up a steady dialogue with every major power, from Washington to Beijing. His candidacy also rests on a clear programme anchored in the Charter: conflict prevention, institutional reform, effective UN action.
The deadline is approaching. Since 30 June, the Security Council has been holding private consultations with the candidates. The first straw polls are expected in the last week of July. The final decision will rest with the General Assembly, for a term beginning on 1 January 2027. On that day, exactly twenty years will have passed since Kofi Annan's departure.
Until then, President Macky Sall is making the case for a United Nations that is effective, respected and true to its Charter to member states, capital after capital: Beijing, Athens, New York, Manama, Islamabad.