United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has asked Nigeria to spearhead Africa’s quest for a restructured global order, describing the country as uniquely positioned to lead the continent toward superpower status.
Guterres praised the economic reforms of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration as well as Nigeria’s leadership in stabilising the Sahel and ECOWAS regions despite facing its own security challenges.
The UN Chief made the remarks on Friday during a high-level bilateral meeting with Vice President Kashim Shettima on the sidelines of the 39th African Union (AU) Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Speaking during the talks, Guterres said Nigeria’s large population, sustained democratic governance, vast natural and human resources, and longstanding commitment to multilateralism place it in a unique position to lead Africa in the evolving global order.
“Given Nigeria’s demographic strength, democratic continuity and deep resource base, the country stands a real chance of leading Africa to becoming the next superpower in the evolving global architecture,” Guterres was quoted to have said in a statement by Shettima’s media aide, Stanley Nkwocha.
He said the UN Secretary-General and the Vice President discussed key developments in Nigeria, as well as the country’s expanding leadership role in promoting regional stability across West Africa and the Sahel.
