Ethiopia Advocates for Reformed Global Order, Amplified African Representation at UN

Addis Ababa — Ethiopian President Taye Atske Selassie urged the international community to strengthen collective security, tackle global inequality, and ensure Africa has a meaningful voice in global decision-making.

Speaking during the General Debate of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly, President Taye argued that sustainable peace depends on cooperation rooted in sovereign equality, invoking Emperor Haile Selassie’s landmark 1963 address to the UN.

He cautioned that eroding collective security and the resurgence of power politics threaten the foundations of the international order, insisting that multilateralism remains essential to preventing conflict.

President Taye highlighted climate change, artificial intelligence, and deepening inequality as defining human challenges, calling for stronger political commitment to ensure technological and economic progress benefits the Global South.

He reaffirmed Ethiopia’s offer to host COP32 in 2027, inviting world leaders and international partners to advance practical, inclusive climate action.

The President reiterated Ethiopia’s call for comprehensive UN reform, particularly of the Security Council, emphasizing that Africa has waited too long for equitable representation.

“Africa has waited far too long in the shadows of global decision-making,” he stated, challenging how the exclusion of more than 1.6 billion Africans can be justified.

On regional matters, President Taye reaffirmed Ethiopia’s commitment to peace, integration, and development in the Horn of Africa, while advocating for a Sudanese-led resolution to the conflict in Sudan.

He also highlighted progress in food security, renewable energy, environmental restoration, and digital development, citing the Green Legacy Initiative, the 5 Million Coders program, and clean-energy ambitions.

The President described the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam as a major Pan-African clean-energy project with potential to boost regional prosperity.

He stressed Ethiopia’s pursuit of reliable maritime access, calling it essential to sustaining economic transformation and global trade integration.

“We are pursuing all possible diplomatic avenues to secure access to and from the sea to ensure Ethiopia’s integration into the global trading system,” he said.

President Taye concluded by reaffirming Ethiopia’s commitment to multilateralism, human dignity, justice, and solidarity, urging nations to collectively reshape international cooperation for current and future generations.

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