NEW YORK – President John Dramani Mahama used his address at the 80th United Nations General Assembly to call out the hypocrisy in global migration policies and to demand a permanent seat for Africa on the UN Security Council. Speaking on Thursday, September 25, the Ghanaian leader criticized what he described as unequal treatment of refugees, highlighting the disparity between the welcome given to Ukrainian refugees and the reluctance shown toward displaced Africans.
President Mahama drew particular attention to the crisis in Sudan, where 12 million people have been displaced. “When we speak of migration, we refer to the 12 million new refugees, whom we, as a global community, should be willing to assist in much the same way that many member nations readily assisted new refugees from Ukraine,” he stated. The President added that many migrants from the Global South are climate refugees, yet the Global North, which is responsible for emitting 75 percent more greenhouse gases, bears less of the burden. “When the desert encroaches and our villages and towns become unlivable, we are forced to flee,” he explained, insisting that the world must not “normalise xenophobia and racism.”
To offer a balanced view on migration, Mahama cited the successes of immigrants of African descent, including Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong, the first Black female judge on a California federal district court, and Peter Bossman, a Ghanaian-born doctor who became the first Black mayor in Slovenia. “If we are going to tell a story, let’s not tell it slant. Let’s tell all the truth,” he declared.
The President then renewed his call for Africa to be granted a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, arguing that the current global governance system is outdated and unfair. “Thirty years after Mandela made this same request, we are still asking: if not now, then when?” he told world leaders.
President Mahama criticized the dominance of post-World War II powers, describing their grip on the Security Council as unjust. “The most powerful post-World War II nations are still being rewarded with an almost totalitarian guardianship over the rest of the world,” he observed. He also questioned the unchecked veto authority wielded by the five permanent members, stating, “There must be a mechanism for the General Assembly to challenge a veto. No single nation should be able to exercise an absolute veto to serve its own interests in a conflict.” Beyond the Security Council, Mahama called for a “reset of the global financial architecture,” which he said is rigged against Africa.
Ruth Abla ADJORLOLO
