Sierra Leone’s President, Dr Julius Maada Bio on Monday May 9, 2022, launched his country’s bid for a non-permanent seat in the non-permanent category of the United Nations Security Council for the period 2024/2025.
The bid is themed: “Partnership, Multilateralism and Representative Approach to Sustained Global Peace and Security”.
President Bio said that in just eight years after Sierra Leone became a member of the United Nations, it had the singular honour to be elected to serve on the organisation’s most powerful deliberative body, the Security Council. “These two unforgettable years of Sierra Leone’s tenure in the Council from 1971 to 1972, served as bold footprints that continue to define our Nation’s commitment to its international obligations and its unflinching support for a multilateral rules-based world order to advance and sustain global peace and security,” he said.
“As a nation, we have continued to play our part as a responsible member of the international community. At various times, Sierra Leone has proudly contributed troops and police to peace support operations so that others may enjoy the peace we enjoy today.”
The president said that 50 plus years after its 1970-1971 tenure on the Security Council, they are once again presenting Sierra Leone’s candidature for a seat in the non-permanent category of the United Nations Security Council for the period 2024-2025.
President Bio said, “Sierra Leone can today proudly boast of its credentials as a successful model of peacebuilding and post-war state reconstruction. We owe it to the global family of nations to share our experience and lessons in peace-making, peacekeeping and peacebuilding.”
“Now more than ever, we believe in an inclusive and consultative approach to peace that thrives on the consensus of UN Member States in pursuit of common values and collective solidarity, irrespective of size, population and economic and military power,” he said.
The Head of State said, “Our time in the Security Council will therefore support priorities that strengthen and address partnership and representation in the maintenance of peace and security.”
He said that they believe that human rights protection and promotion builds confidence in democratic governance, bridges societal divides, strengthens a sense of common values and shared humanity, and promotes peaceful resolution of conflicts grounded in respect of human rights and dignity of all. “Testament of this is our national approach in the past four years which has seen the abolition of the death penalty, the joining of the International Religious Freedom Alliance and the repeal of the seditious libel laws. We will also use our seat to advocate for the ownership and active involvement of women and youth in peace processes and peacekeeping operations as peace mediators,” he said.
President Bio said that they will focus on threats to peace, including terrorism and new threats, (climate change and human security); spotlight small arms control. “Also, given the centrality of Sierra Leone’s role as Coordinator of the C-10 on Security Council reform, we will continue to canvass, mobilise and promote support for the Common African Position. We will unequivocally affirm the need for a comprehensive reform of the United Nations System, which will significantly contribute to upholding the principles, objectives and ideals of the UN Charter for a fairer world, based on universalism, equity and regional balance.
“We want to share with the world our unique selling points, our religious tolerance, peaceful coexistence, and our resilience as a country,” he said.
President Bio said, “Today, as we launch Sierra Leone’s bid for a seat in the Non-Permanent category of the United Nations, for one of the 3 seats allocated for Africa, I am pleased to inform you that in the spirit of African solidarity, Sierra Leone’s candidature has been endorsed by the African Union. For this, I wish to thank the African Union, the ECOWAS and our regional partners for the support and confidence reposed in Sierra Leone to carry this mantle for the continent.”
Within the context of its international obligations, he said, Sierra Leone has been taking on more responsibilities in the global arena as a small nation. “Sierra Leone seats on the Special Committee on Decolonisation (C-24). For almost two decades now, Sierra Leone has served as Coordinator of the African Union Committee of Ten on the Reform of the Security Council, (C-10) with the mandate to promote, defend and canvass the Common African Position. Most recently Sierra Leone was honoured to be endorsed as the new Chair of the Africa Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) at the 35th Ordinary Session of Heads of State and Government of the AU in February this year.”
Presiddent said, “We acknowledge that this endeavour is a monumental task, and we cannot count on credentials alone. The responsibility of canvassing support for Sierra Leone’s candidature does not lie with the Presidency and the Foreign Ministry alone. The responsibility is a collective one as a nation. It will engage the Presidency, the Vice Presidency, Government Ministers, Parliament, Civil Society, and the Fourth Estate. It is a national assignment.”
“Finally, let me solicit the valuable support of our friends and partners of the Diplomatic Corps, who are members of the UN, during the elections to be held at the UN General Assembly in New York in June 2023. Sierra Leone counts on your vote so that together we can work towards our common vision for a stable and prosperous world.”
By Sallieu S. Kanu