Johannesburg - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says as the global community moves towards multipolarity, it desperately needs a strengthened, reformed multilateral architecture based on the UN Charter and international law.
“Today’s global governance structures were largely created in the aftermath of World War II, when many African countries were still ruled by colonial powers and not at the table.
“This is particularly true of the UN Security Council and the Bretton Woods institutions,” said Guterres.
“We cannot afford a world with a divided global economy and financial system,” he said.
He said he came to South Africa for the BRICS summit with a simple message: in a fracturing world with overwhelming crises, there is simply no alternative to co-operation.
“We must urgently reinvigorate multilateralism. This requires compromise on reforms for the greater good … and much greater solidarity.”
Africa, a victim of slavery and colonialism, still confronted grave injustices, he said.
On average, African countries paid four times more for borrowing than the US and eight times more than the wealthiest European nations. “African countries account for just 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions but are an epicentre of climate chaos.”
The Star