In his first address to the United Nations General Assembly, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu called for a global partnership to support African development and address the continent’s challenges, including climate change, insecurity, and poverty.
Tinubu said that Africa needs “an equally firm commitment to partnership” from the international community to achieve the 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals. He highlighted five important points:
- Global institutions, other nations, and their private sector actors must see African development as a priority, not just for Africa but in their interests as well.
- Democratic governance must be affirmed as the best guarantor of the sovereign will and well-being of the people.
- The international community must strengthen its commitment to arrest the flow of arms and violent people into West Africa.
- Member nations must work with African countries to deter their firms and nationals from illegally mining gold and other resources.
- Established economies must be more forthcoming with public and private sector investment for Africa’s preferred climate change initiatives.
Tinubu said that Africa seeks to be neither “appendage nor patron” and that the continent is “nothing less than the key to the world’s future.”
The Nigerian president’s address comes at a time when Africa is facing a number of challenges, including climate change, insecurity, and economic hardship. Tinubu’s call for a global partnership to support African development is a timely one, and it is hoped that the international community will respond positively.
