Nigeria don stand for front of Africa to demand stronger action against illegal weapons trade. Ambassador Jimoh Ibrahim, wey be Nigeria permanent representative to United Nations, talk say international partners must continue to support efforts to stop spread of illicit weapons.
He present Africa position for 9th Biennial Meeting of States wey United Nations call. Di meeting dey review how di Programme of Action to prevent, combat, and eradicate illicit trade in small arms and light weapons dey work, plus di International Tracing Instrument. Dem also examine key challenges and opportunities to implement both frameworks for national, regional, and global levels.
Senator Ibrahim speak for African Group. He note say 25 years after di adoption of di Programme of Action and 21 years after di International Tracing Instrument, di illicit trade in small arms and light weapons still dey fuel armed violence across di world. He describe di situation for Africa as particularly alarming. Small arms and light weapons don become di continent true weapons of mass destruction. Dem dey drive terrorism, transnational organised crime, prolonged conflicts, humanitarian crises, and loss of countless lives.
According to di Nigerian envoy, di African Group see di meeting as opportunity to turn longstanding commitments into measurable outcomes. He explain say Africa participation dey guided by di Common African Position, wey outline di continent priorities for national, regional, and international levels. Ibrahim reaffirm Africa commitment to di principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity, non-interference, self-defence, and peaceful settlement of disputes as enshrined in di Charter of di United Nations.
Di Nigerian diplomat highlight four key priorities of di African Group. He stress say national implementation efforts must produce tangible results. He note say African countries don strengthen legal and regulatory frameworks wey dey govern di whole life cycle of small arms and light weapons, including manufacture, marking, stockpile management, and disposal. He further state say African nations don invest in national coordinating bodies, designated points of contact, and national action plans to tackle di proliferation of illicit weapons.
He call on international partners to continue to support these efforts while respecting national ownership and ensuring say assistance remain voluntary and demand-driven. On di issue of diversion, di envoy say preventing weapons from falling into wrong hands remain central to Africa agenda. He advocate stronger physical security and stockpile management measures for peacetime, conflict, and post-conflict situations, plus improved end-user controls, monitoring systems, investigations, and information-sharing mechanisms. He also urge di international community to criminalise di conversion of deactivated, blank-firing, and non-lethal firearms into fully functional weapons.
Di African Group, he say, continue to call for prohibition on transfer of small arms and light weapons to unauthorised non-state actors, including criminal and terrorist organisations engaged in violent activities. Addressing emerging technologies, Senator Jimoh Ibrahim emphasise say technology should help close, rather than widen, di gaps wey enable illicit trafficking and proliferation. He call for regulation of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies to prevent dem misuse for facilitating spread of illegal weapons.
Ibrahim reaffirm di African Group commitment to constructive engagement and practical action for addressing di devastating impact of illicit small arms and light weapons. He express hope say di meeting go deliver meaningful outcomes wey go strengthen international peace, security, and sustainable development.
Meanwhile, di senator don dey elected Chairman of Budget and Administration of di UN. Ibrahim, wey describe di election as honour, thank President Bola Tinubu for im support. He say, “It is indeed an honour for me to be elected as the Chairman of Budget and the Administration of the United Nations today, June 2, 2026. Let me thank the good people of Nigeria for this historic achievement. I assured my colleagues of 193 member states that at this challenging time in history, it is my responsibility to provide a strategy in a chaotic situation.”
