Nigeria, 1994

On behalf of the Nigerian

delegation, I wish to congratulate you, Sir, on your

election as President of the General Assembly at its

forty-ninth session. Your election is a tribute not only to

you personally and to your great country, but to Africa as

a whole. As a representative of Côte d’Ivoire, a country

with which Nigeria enjoys excellent and brotherly

relations, you have our full confidence in your ability to

successfully discharge the responsibilities of your high

office.

I wish to express our sincere appreciation to your

predecessor, Mr. Samuel Insanally of Guyana, for the

admirable and effective manner in which he conducted

the business of the forty-eighth session.

Let me also commend our esteemed

Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, for the

purposeful manner in which he has discharged the duties

of his office.

My Government heartily welcomes South Africa

back to the General Assembly. For decades, the policy of

apartheid kept that great country from participating in the

work of the Assembly. Happily, apartheid has now been

consigned to history. We salute all those who identified

with, and contributed to, the long struggle to eradicate

apartheid and racism in South Africa. A special tribute

must be paid to our brothers and sisters in South Africa

who were the direct victims of that evil system and who

led the struggle for its eradication.

We commend the vision and statesmanship of

President Nelson Mandela for his effective leadership in

managing so skilfully the transition of a once-divided

society to a united, non-racial, democratic nation. We

commend the courage and the untiring efforts of his

Government and the entire people of South Africa to heal

the wounds of the past and launch their country on the

path of economic growth and prosperity on a foundation

of justice and equity for all its citizens. We are confident

11

that the new South Africa will contribute positively to the

work of the United Nations.

In the last few years we have witnessed rapid and

profound changes on the international scene. Not only have

complex challenges arisen, but also new opportunities for

the United Nations to redouble its efforts and contributions

to the quest for peace and security and to build a world

characterized by cooperation and an international

community nurtured by a common concern for humanity.

It is a matter of serious concern that the peaceful

world expected to be ushered in by the end of the cold war

has not materialized. The world continues to face some of

the worst forms of conflict and new threats to international

peace and security. Violent conflicts arising from resurgent

nationalism and religious intolerance between and within

States have proliferated. The unresolved situations in

Rwanda, Liberia, Somalia, Afghanistan, Cambodia, parts of

the former Yugoslavia and parts of the former Soviet Union

have caused wanton loss of life and destruction to property

and have given rise to humanitarian crises of immense

proportions. We must find early and lasting solutions to

these conflicts, as they constitute continuing threats to

regional stability and to world peace.

Against this backdrop, the United Nations, as the focal

point of international cooperation, should seek to redefine

its role and establish new structures and mechanisms that

can respond effectively to the challenges of crisis

management and conflict resolution. The United Nations

must retain its primary responsibility for taking the lead in

addressing these problems. The Secretary-General’s

Agenda for Peace provides a novel and imaginative

framework towards this end.

In the emerging world order Africa must not continue

to remain a continent beset with crises and dependent on

others for resolution of its internal conflicts. In realization

of this, the Organization of African Unity (OAU)

established in 1993 a Central Mechanism for Conflict

Prevention, Resolution and Management. However, it is

evident that the OAU’s capacity to effectively mobilize the

required financial and logistic resources for this purpose is

severely limited. There is, therefore, a necessity for the

international community and the United Nations to

encourage, through increased financial and logistic support,

Africa’s efforts at peaceful settlements of disputes through

regional and other arrangements, in accordance with the

United Nations Charter. We urge the international

community to contribute urgently and generously to the

Africa Peace Fund, established by the Organization of

African Unity.

The capacity of the United Nations to respond

promptly and effectively to the demands made on it for

peace-keeping operations depends on the willingness of

Member States to accept that there is a primary role for

the United Nations and that they be ready to contribute

the necessary resources to enable it to fulfil such a role.

Since our admission 34 years ago, Nigeria has been an

active participant in global efforts at peace-keeping,

conflict resolution and crisis management. Our

experience over the years has convinced us that there is

a clear need to re-examine and reorient the peace-keeping

efforts of the United Nations. Since initiating in Liberia

the Economic Community of West African States Military

Observer Group (ECOMOG), a subregional peace-keeping

force, Nigeria has become Africa’s and, indeed, the

world’s largest troop contributor to international

peace-keeping operations. Even though one or two

Member States may choose not to recognize its

contribution, the records at the disposal of this

Organization will clearly show Nigeria’s significant

contribution to the shared responsibility of global peace-

keeping, with its attendant sacrifices, including loss of

Nigerian lives.

That is why we are concerned at the incessant

harassment, kidnapping and killing of peace-keeping

personnel in various theatres of conflict. As an

encouragement to other countries to participate in these

costly and often dangerous operations, the United Nations

must develop a capacity of effective deterrence against

such attacks and adopt appropriate measures to provide

prompt and adequate compensation for the victims.

One of the disturbing consequences of the

proliferation of conflicts is the increasing incidence of

refugees and displaced persons. It is our firm conviction

that Governments must create structures and suitable

conditions which will enable peoples to live in a secure

and safe environment in full enjoyment of their human

rights and fundamental freedoms. Regrettably, Africa has

the largest number of refugees and displaced persons in

the world. This imposes additional and enormous

financial, material and social burdens on the already

distressed economies of receiving States. We commend

the efforts of the international community in addressing

the refugee problems through the provision of

humanitarian assistance. We call on all Governments to

eradicate the root causes of the existence of refugees and

displaced persons and to create the appropriate conditions

12

for facilitating their voluntary return to their various

countries.

Despite the end of the cold war, nuclear weapons

continue to pose the greatest threat to international peace

and security. Consequently, the need to reduce substantially

and ultimately eliminate them must remain our primary

goal. Recent reports of a rising trend of trafficking in

nuclear materials represent a disturbing new dimension to

nuclear proliferation which must be checked as a matter of

urgency.

Next year’s review and extension conference of the

non-proliferation Treaty, which has so far served the

international community rather well, must be pursued with

vigour. The review and extension of the Treaty must be

consistent with objective reality and the basic expectations

of Member States.

Questions of peace and security are inextricably linked

to issues of development. We therefore welcome the

presentation by the Secretary-General of "An Agenda for

Development" (A/48/935), which is a fitting complement to

his earlier proposals in "An Agenda for Peace" (A/47/277).

In "An Agenda for Development", the Secretary-General

has identified five strands: peace as the foundation for

development; the economy as the engine of progress; the

environment as a basis for sustainability; justice as a pillar

of society; and democracy as good governance. Nigeria

welcomes these presentations because we believe that the

people must be at the centre of all governmental activity,

including the goals of development, peace and security.

Global efforts in addressing the crisis of development

have, over the years, reflected a dichotomy of perception

between the industrialized countries of the North and the

developing countries of the South. We must recognize that

development, like peace, is indivisible. It is therefore of

vital importance that the North and the South should see

cooperation in development in terms of mutuality of interest

and partnership. The expectation that the end of the cold

war would make more resources available for development,

especially in developing countries, has regrettably remained

unfulfilled. In the circumstances, the international

community should initiate bold and imaginative measures

to bridge the widening gap between the rich and the poor

nations. Affluence in the midst of poverty provides neither

peace nor security either to the rich or to the poor.

Africa continues to face grave economic difficulties,

at the heart of which is the debt crisis. The perennial

problems of declining investment, capital flight and fall in

commodity prices remain. The response of the

international community has been feeble and rather

inadequate. The United Nations Programme of Action for

Africa’s Economic Recovery and Development

(UNPAAERD) did not achieve its desired objectives. It

does not appear that the New Agenda for Africa’s

Development in the 1990s will meet with much success

either. It is therefore imperative that Africa should be

enabled to make a fresh start to address these problems

effectively through an imaginative solution to the debt

crisis and the diversification of its economies.

For our part, we recognize the need for credible

macro-economic policies, as well as for fundamental

reforms of our political institutions and processes, and we

are taking measures in this regard. However, there is a

need to evolve new mechanisms and strategies for

international cooperation and partnership.

In the wake of the efforts made in structurally

reforming our economy and the democratizion of our

political institutions, Nigeria, like many other African

countries, has come to grips with certain realities, the

ramifications of which are usually misconstrued and need

to be fully understood.

Political pluralism, as a facet of democratization, is

so deeply ingrained in our national way of life that over

the years we have tried to evolve appropriate democratic

institutions and values arising from and responding to our

specific national experiences, circumstances and

aspirations. We remain committed to this process, which

is on course, despite its difficulties and challenges.

Too often the process of democratization in Nigeria

and, indeed, in several other parts of Africa, has not been

correctly presented to the international community.

Recent advances in information technology and our lack

of resources and capacity for information delivery have

hampered our ability to objectively project developments

occurring in our societies. For instance, in Nigeria, we

continue to make impressive progress in rebuilding

sustainable democratic structures and institutions. A

Constitutional Conference whose members were largely

elected and representing a wide spectrum of our society

and diverse interests, has been working assiduously to

create an environment conducive to mutual trust,

confidence and common purpose among our people. The

objective of the Conference is to establish appropriate

modalities, institutions and frameworks for a viable

democratic order, by laying down the ground rules for the

formation of political parties, and for conducting free and

13

fair elections at all levels of government. The

Constitutional Conference will complete its work by

November 1994. Following the progress made so far,

political activities have already commenced and full-fledged

political party activities leading to general elections will

commence early in the new year. The resolve and

commitment of the Nigerian people and Government to

democracy remain firm and unshakeable in the full

realization that the task of democratization is primarily our

responsibility and is for the good of our people.

The United Nations has no doubt distinguished itself

since its inception as an indispensable forum for

harmonizing the actions of nations. We are confident that

it will continue to serve in the years ahead as a platform for

galvanizing and channelling our collective efforts towards

lasting peace and justice. This is especially so if we look

inwards with a view to revitalizing and strengthening the

Organization itself. The Government of Nigeria endorses

the view of the Secretary-General in his report "An Agenda

for Peace" to the effect that to meet the challenges of a new

era, the United Nations must reinforce its capacity to

respond as well as to reorient its approach to issues which

confront it. We subscribe to his recommendation that

Member States provide the necessary political commitment

and financial resources to enable the Organization to

expand, adapt and reinvigorate its work.

The reforms undertaken by our Organization so far

have been essentially piecemeal and incremental. We have

made it clear on several occasions that the time was ripe

for a fundamental restructuring of the United Nations

system. The present composition and the decision-making

process of the Security Council do not adequately reflect

current realities brought into sharp relief since the end of

the cold war. As an instrument for multilateral cooperation,

the United Nations must be transparent, efficient and

democratic.

The Security Council, as the most important organ of

the United Nations, should embody the global quest for

democratization in its structure, composition and

decision-making processes. In this regard, Nigeria attaches

particular importance to the work of the Open-Ended

Working Group on the question of equitable representation

on and increase in the membership of the Security Council.

It is our expectation that the recommendations that will

emerge will make the United Nations more responsive to

the needs of the international community. We also expect

that the criteria for permanent membership of the Council

should include such considerations as population, capacity

to contribute to the maintenance of international peace and

security, and a track record assessed over a period of time

in international peace-keeping and peacemaking efforts.

All permanent members should enjoy the same status and

privileges and assume the responsibilities incumbent on

membership. No less important is the imperative of

equitable geographical representation, which must include

permanent membership for Africa in the Security Council.

In this connection, it is appropriate that I reconfirm

Nigeria’s offer to serve the international community as a

permanent member of the Security Council.

In this last decade of the twentieth century, two

issues have preoccupied the United Nations: the

promotion of peace and security and the intensification of

international cooperation for development. On both

issues, the United Nations has responded to our collective

aspirations with varying degrees of success. As we

approach the twenty-first century, we must dedicate

ourselves anew to the full realization of these core goals

and objectives of our Organization so that mankind can

enjoy peace, freedom and prosperity.