Tanzania launches bid for UN Security Council seat

The East African nation is seeking a non-permanent place for 2029–2030 with elections due in June 2028 Tanzania has announced its bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2029–2030 term, Vice President Deogratius Ndejembi said on Tuesday.

Speaking at the 81st UN General Assembly debate in New York, Ndejembi said that if elected, the East African nation intends to focus on preventive diplomacy, the peaceful settlement of disputes, the role of women and young people in peace and security, and reforming UN peacekeeping operations.

“The African Union formally took note of Tanzanian’s candidacy for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the term 2029-2030 during elections to be held by this Assembly in June 2028,” the vice president said.

Tanzania has previously served two terms on the Security Council, in 1975–1976 and 2005–2006.

Read more Africa demands its seat at the table.

Will it get one? “We will put forward and prioritize deliberations on matters vital to the maintenance of international peace and security,” the vice president said.

The Security Council has five permanent members – Russia, China, the US, the UK and France – which hold veto powers, as well as ten non-permanent members elected by the UN General Assembly for two-year terms.

Africa is currently represented by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo), Liberia and Somalia, with Somalia’s term ending in 2026 and Zimbabwe set to replace it in January after being elected for 2027–2028.

DR Congo and Liberia will remain on the Council through 2027.

READ MORE: Africa must get permanent seats on Security Council – UN chief Calls have meanwhile intensified for Africa to gain permanent representation on the Security Council.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at the opening of the 81st UN General Assembly debate that the continent’s continued exclusion from permanent membership is unjust and that the body should be reformed to better reflect the modern global order.

Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama has described the continent’s exclusion as a “historical injustice,” while Russia has repeatedly backed greater representation for African and other Global South nations on the body.

Every third child is born in Africa, which is home to over 1.59 billion people and 54 countries which are members of the UN, roughly 28% of the total.