Nigeria can generate substantial revenue by increasing its police and military deployment to United Nations missions, with proceeds capable of funding the country’s security institutions.
This is the position of Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Jimoh Ibrahim, who has been speaking with AIT.live in New York, on the sidelines of the ongoing UN General Assembly, UNGA.
Ambassador Ibrahim says the UN peacekeeping operations budget is about $5.5 billion, and it is time for Nigeria to take greater advantage of its contributions to global peace efforts.
He revealed that some countries earn hundreds of millions of dollars annually from their participation in UN peacekeeping operations.
Jimoh said there has been a comprehensive diagnosis of Nigeria’s engagement with the world body and President Tinubu has given the mission a clear mandate to deliver a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for Nigeria.
Pursuit to this mandate, Nigeria has secured the chairmanship of the UN’s Budget and Administration Committee, a position Ambassador Jimoh will take effect from October 1.
The committee oversees the UN’s 18.5 billion dollar budget and Ambassador Ibrahim has promised sweeping reforms in the global body’s budget including staff rationalisation.
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The envoy criticised the current UN spending structure, claiming that 90% of the organisation’s revenue is spent on the Secretariat while only 10% goes to member-states.
The Permanent Representative stressed that securing a Security Council seat, combined with the chairmanship of the budget and administration committee, would fully restore Nigeria’s strategic position at the UN.
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(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
