Sierra Leone says August UNSC presidency will press for council reform and focus on West Africa

Sierra Leone’s representative to the United Nations said the country will use its August 2024 presidency of the UN Security Council to press for structural reform and greater African representation on the body.

The representative, identified only as the Minister for Sierra Leone’s mission to the UN, told reporters that Sierra Leone assumed its current non-permanent seat on Jan. 20, 2024, returning after a previous tenure in 1971 and drawing on ‘‘a decade of civil conflict and two decades of post-conflict recovery, peacebuilding and improving democratic governance’’ to inform its approach. "Looking ahead, Sierra Leone will hold the presidency of the Security Council in August 2024 and will give particular priority to addressing the structural imbalance in the United Nations Security Council through focused discussion on the reform of the UNSC," the Minister said.

Why it matters: The Minister framed the effort as part of a longer African campaign, noting efforts that began in 2004 and AU-level assignments to coordinate heads of state on the issue. Sierra Leone said it will press for reforms that increase African representation among permanent and non-permanent seats and for substantive debate on how recent council decisions affect the African continent.

Details: The Minister listed a set of priorities Sierra Leone will carry through its term: conflict prevention, peacemaking and peacekeeping; women, peace and security; youth, peace and security; counterterrorism; climate security; accountability; and small arms control. He also said Sierra Leone would coordinate the elected members of the Council in April as part of the E10 effort and has engaged within the A3+ mechanism to highlight African concerns.

The delegation emphasized that the August presidency will be an opportunity to raise the ‘‘historical injustice’’ the Minister said has left Africa underrepresented in permanent seats on the Security Council and to pursue concrete measures to improve representation and the council’s responsiveness to regional crises.

Outlook: The Minister said Sierra Leone plans to use the presidency to advance a prevention-focused agenda and to draw on the country’s experience in post-conflict recovery in discussions ahead of the summit of the future.