Macron concludes African tour in Ethiopia with focus on UN reform

(Patria) - French President Emmanuel Macron concluded his visit to Africa on Wednesday with talks in Ethiopia that, among other things, covered the long-standing issue of Africa's representation in the United Nations Security Council, AP reported.

Macron spoke with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, and later with Chairperson of the African Union Commission Mahamoud Ali Youssouf and UN Secretary-General António Guterres, discussing inclusive global governance.

The leaders "recognized the need for African representation," according to a statement from the meeting.

Macron, who visited Egypt, Kenya, and Ethiopia during his trip to Africa, called for better representation of Africa in international institutions such as the UN Security Council.

During his opening remarks at the Africa Forward Summit, hosted by France and Kenya, and held for the first time in an English-speaking country, Macron recognized the need for permanent seats for Africa in the Security Council.

A Declaration on Peace and Security adopted at the end of the summit also called for the "urgent need for comprehensive reform of the UN Security Council to make it more effective and representative".

Africa's aspiration for permanent seats has always been based on the need to reflect the contemporary global reality, a continent with over 1.4 billion people.

Guterres stated on Wednesday that the world would benefit from an inclusive UN Security Council.

"The Security Council today does not geographically represent the reality of the world. We have three permanent European members, one North American and one Asian. No Latin American, no African, and obviously a Security Council that has a legitimacy problem, which also brings with it an efficiency problem," he said.

Following the meeting between Macron and Abiy, a new loan financing agreement worth $63.9 million was announced for Ethiopia's green energy and digitalization investment program.

During the Africa Forward summit, Macron said that the French government and the private sector would mobilize investments worth $27 billion to foster inclusive growth across Africa.