President William Ruto has renewed calls for Africa to be given a genuine seat at the table as world powers redesign international financial and governance institutions, arguing that fairness, not favors, should guide the process.
Speaking to journalists in Évian-les-Bains, France, on the sidelines of the G7 Summit, the President said bodies such as the United Nations Security Council, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank were long overdue for democratization. He framed Africa's demand not as a request for special concessions but as a push for parity with other regions.
"We are not asking for special treatment as Africa, but there must be equal treatment," Ruto told reporters.
Africa Is a Player, Not a Bystander
The Kenyan leader pushed back on the notion that Africa is merely watching global events unfold from the sidelines. Instead, he positioned the continent as an active force shaping new frameworks of international cooperation and development, one whose voice carries growing weight in shaping how the world responds to shared crises.
He pointed to a historical injustice at the root of today's imbalance: Africa had no representation when most of these institutions were built in the aftermath of the Second World War in 1945. That absence, he argued, has shaped decades of skewed outcomes that now need correcting.
"As the African continent, we need a new paradigm shift with our partners. We need a new relationship and a new engagement," he said.
According to the President, the global system as it stands can no longer hold. He warned that piecemeal, uncoordinated responses to international challenges would deepen global instability rather than resolve it, and that any lasting fix must be rooted in fairness, inclusion, and a shared sense of responsibility among nations.
Security Council Reform Should Be Led by Reformers, Not Administrators
Ruto expressed optimism that discussions at the G7 would help advance long-stalled reforms at the UN Security Council, pushing it toward becoming a more democratic, representative, and accountable body.
"This meeting will be an opportunity for Africa to have a forthright and candid conversation with our partners," he said, adding pointedly that "the UN must not be run by an administrator but by a reformer."
Africa's Demographic and Resource Weight Can't Be Ignored
Beyond institutional reform, the President made the case for Africa as an indispensable engine of future global prosperity. He cited the continent's wealth of untapped resources, ranging from minerals and arable land to renewable energy potential still largely unexploited.
He also pointed to demographic projections showing that by 2050, Africa will be home to roughly 40 percent of the world's labor force and a quarter of the global population, a shift that will turn the continent into both a major source of workers and a critical consumer market.
Three Priorities Ruto Wants Addressed
The President outlined three specific issues he believes must be tackled to unlock Africa's economic potential.
First, he called for greater access to concessional development financing, arguing that affordable capital is essential if the continent is to fully harness its resources and demographic advantages.
Second, he raised concerns over the persistent gap in borrowing costs, noting that African nations continue to pay markedly higher interest rates on loans from international lenders compared to other regions, despite facing comparable or lower actual risk.
Third, he took aim at global credit rating agencies, accusing them of overstating risk levels on the continent. "We must also sort out the problem of global rating agencies exaggerating Africa's risk, yet the continent is not as risky as they want the world to believe," he said.
Finally, Ruto insisted Africa must have a say in how emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, are deployed to drive economic transformation, rather than having such decisions made without its input.
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