President Macky Sall's candidacy for the office of UN Secretary-General raises a question of proportion. By 2050, one person in four on the planet will live in Africa. A continent of that weight cannot remain an occasional guest at the tables where the world's order is decided.
A presence earned, not granted. In 2023 the African Union became a permanent member of the G20. That place, set in motion during Senegal's chairmanship of the Union in 2022, was won through patient work, file by file, capital by capital. It shows that representation refused for decades gives way once a continent speaks with a single voice.
Weighing in proportion to its size. Africa supplies a major share of peacekeepers, accounts for a major share of the Security Council's files, and will soon be home to a quarter of humanity. Its share in the decisions bears no relation to those figures. The Secretary-General does not redistribute the seats, but can recall that gap each time a decision is being shaped.
A voice that adds, without subtracting. A better-represented Africa takes no one's place. It brings to shared decisions the vantage of the region that will carry a growing share of the century's population, labour and resources. The institutions that include it gain in legitimacy what they concede in habit.
Experience in multilateral negotiation. Twelve years as head of state and the chairmanship of the African Union in 2022 underpin these commitments. That experience explains why the vision statement filed with the United Nations frames its proposals as obligations: peace, security and development conceived together; a renewed multilateralism; stronger governance of the Organization.
Africa at its heart, the world in its sights.
The admission of the African Union to the G20 and the demographic projections of the United Nations are public. Read all public positions at www.mackysall.net