• ‘Multipolarity in itself is not a guarantee of peace and prosperity,’ UN chief warns

ANKARA/ISTANBUL

The African Union (AU) on Monday called for Africa's permanent representation on the UN Security Council as well as equitable representation in international financial institutions.

At the 7th African Union-European Union Summit in Angola's capital, Luanda, AU Commission Chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf lamented the "uncertainty that prevails on the international scene," where international rules are being questioned due to an increase in conflicts, terrorism, and extremism.

He also expressed concern about the "devitalization of international law," noting that Africa is experiencing its own political, security, and development crises.

Africa must position itself in a context where "the rules of the World Trade Organization are torn, and the UN Security Council's actions are limited due to conflicts of interest and antagonism between big decision-makers," Youssouf explained.

“Africa continues to request its seat at this table,” he stressed. “We request our seat on the UN Security Council based on the Ezulwini consensus, as well as equitable representation in international financial institutions.”

The AU chief also called for a reform of the international financial architecture to reduce Africa's capital costs and ensure its access to funding, stressing that "Europe must play a major role" in this regard.

He stressed that Africa is "making progress to be a key player in the different stages of the global value chain" and that its role as a "raw material supplier only will come to an end soon," hence his call for "more balanced trade partnerships."

“I'm pleading for European investments in the transformation process of our minerals on the continent. I'm calling for the lifting of any tariff or non-tariff barrier hampering the access of African products to the European market. I'm finally calling for a stronger and more viable multilateralism based on equality, respect for all nations, and advancing the common vital global interest,” Youssouf added.

‘Multipolarity in itself is not a guarantee of peace and prosperity’

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at the summit that the world is moving towards a multipolar order with global power in flux, warning against a division into two major blocs and stressing the need for interconnected multipolarity with inclusive networks in trade, development, finance, and growing political coordination.

He said the AU-EU partnership, and more broadly Europe-Africa ties, could form a central axis in a new multipolar world, offering a chance to “ratify historic injustices and usher in a fairer, more equal system for countries long excluded from global decision-making.”

“Multipolarity in itself is not a guarantee of peace and prosperity,” he said, noting that Europe in 1914 was multipolar but without strong multilateral governance, which led to war.

Guterres called for today’s multipolarity to be underpinned by “strong multilateral institutions and dynamics as a condition for stability and balance.”

He described the Russia-Ukraine war as Europe’s “worst conflict in a generation, unleashing terrible suffering for civilians and deep disruptions in the global economy.”

“The death and destruction in Gaza will be remembered as our bigger failure of humanity,” he said, highlighting the “bloodshed and pain” in Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Mali, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and others.

“But there is a way forward,” Guterres said, noting that the 2024 Pact for the Future calls for permanent African seats on the UN Security Council to address “historic injustice” and bolster the council’s ability to deliver global peace.

He reiterated his call for sustainable, flexible, and predictable funding for AU-led peace operations, as endorsed by Security Council resolution 2719, and commended the EU for its long-standing engagement and advocacy on the issue.

'A just transition for all, made in Africa'

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said global overcapacity in strategic sectors is at an all-time high, hurting industries on both continents.

She called on Africa and Europe to work together to create jobs, empower youth, diversify economies, reduce dependencies, and seize new partnership opportunities in trade and investment.

She highlighted efforts to expand trade across the continent, including joint infrastructure projects like the Lobito corridor, support for local farmers and businesses to meet European standards, and new backing for the African Continental Free Trade Area.

“Other investors might follow a different playbook by building factories, whether in Africa or in Europe, but staff them with foreign workers. They drill, they mine, and they take the profits away. They often leave a legacy of unsustainable debts. This is not Europe's model,” she said.

Von der Leyen said investments in local processing in Namibia and Zambia, pharmaceutical industries from Senegal to Rwanda, and data cables across Africa are in Europe and Africa’s mutual interest, creating jobs, skills, businesses, and new markets for European companies.

Although over 90% of new energy capacity last year was renewable, and solar and wind have overtaken coal, she explained, only 2% of the $2 trillion invested in clean energy in 2024 reached Africa, home to 60% of the world’s solar potential.

It leaves 600 million without electricity and four in five families without clean cooking, she added.

Von der Leyen said the “Scaling Up Renewables in Africa” campaign, launched in Nov. 2024 in Brazil with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, aims to “bring electricity to millions of people across the continent.”

She also said Europe has pledged more than €400 million at the International Energy Agency’s summit for clean cooking projects in Africa.

“Because a just transition must be for all, and it must be made in Africa,” she stressed.