On 14 August 2026, in Cotonou, civil society organizations from West, Central, North and East Africa launched a drive in support of President Macky Sall's candidacy for the office of UN Secretary-General. The effort is coordinated by Mr Cyrille Nguiegang.
A citizens' relay for the candidacy. To the support of states is added a civic voice, carried by networks from four regions of the continent. The meeting was held under one watchword: African leadership in the service of peace, of multilateralism and of the community.
A candidacy already carried by the continent. The support gathered in Cotonou extends that of governments. Rwanda, Ethiopia and Tanzania recently joined the favourable countries, bringing to forty-one the number of African states backing the candidacy. The African Union had expressed its firm support on 26 March 2026, at the end of a silence procedure.
The voice of a whole continent. The former President of Guinea-Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, stated that President Macky Sall's candidacy "is that of all Africa." The Cotonou gathering gives that phrase a footing beyond the institutions, among the organizations that work closest to the people.
An echo of the filed vision. This mobilization meets the substance of the candidacy: carrying Africa's voice in global governance. The vision statement filed with the United Nations makes it one of its axes, alongside a peace conceived with development and a renewed multilateralism.
Africa at its heart, the world in its sights.
The Cotonou meeting was reported by the African press on 14 August 2026. Read all public positions at www.mackysall.net