ECA at UNGA80: Africa at the heart of a new era for multilateralism

New York, 29 September 2025 (ECA) - As the United Nations marks its 80th General Assembly, the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) joined world leaders in reaffirming the UN's founding vision: a platform to address global challenges through solidarity, equality, and shared responsibility.

United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ECA, Claver Gatete, emphasized that Africa must not be seen as a periphery but as a central actor in shaping today's new world dynamics, one in which Africa's realities, priorities, and potential must be placed at the center of global decision-making. To realize this promise, global systems must reflect Africa's realities, not outdated perceptions.

ECA's presence at UNGA80 comes at a time of urgent calls for reform of global financial architecture. At a high-level event on Reconfiguring Global Credit Rating Practices, Gatete stressed that despite low default rates, Africa pays three times more to borrow than advanced economies, a structural injustice that stifles investment in health, education, and climate-resilient infrastructure. He underscored the establishment of the African Credit Rating Agency as a strategic tool to ensure fairness, transparency, and agency in shaping the continent's financial destiny.

At the Second G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting, the Executive Secretary further called for a reformed international system that mobilizes resources for sustainable growth. "Reforming the financial system is not charity, it is justice." He said, urging for accelerated Multilateral Development Banks reform, innovative financing tools, and stronger African representation in global decision-making.

ECA also spotlighted Africa's structural transformation agenda, from green industrialization and regional value chains to digital leapfrogging and climate-smart agriculture, aligning with the priorities voiced by UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Speaking at the Global Africa Business Initiative: Unstoppable Africa 2025, the Secretary-General reminded the world that Africa is home to the world's youngest population, abundant renewable energy, and extraordinary creativity. "Africa is opportunity," he declared. "Let us invest in Africa's people and potential, and make Africa's rise undeniable, inevitable, and unstoppable."

Throughout high-level engagements at UNGA80, ECA reiterated its commitment to work with Member States, partners, and the private sector resonating with Africa's long-term vision, Agenda 2063, and the UN's Pact for the Future: building inclusive economies, securing jobs for the continent's youth, and ensuring that Africa's rise is not only unstoppable but undeniable.

Issued by: Communications Section Economic Commission for Africa PO Box 3001 Addis Ababa Ethiopia Tel: +251 11 551 5826 E-mail: [email protected]