Ruto Touts African Financial Sovereignty and Self-Reliance at 80th United Nations General Assembly

In his address at the 80th United Nations General Assembly (#UNGA80) on 24 September 2025, Kenyan President William Ruto put forward three measures to reinforce African financial sovereignty. He also demanded that Africa be included in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) with two permanent seats with veto power as well as two additional non-permanent seats.

Ruto retold the cautionary tale of the League of Nations. Created after World War I to avoid repetition of such catastrophic clashes, the League was dumped into the dustbin of history as it stood powerless to prevent the flare-up of World War II. Today, conflicts are similarly perduring due to the UNSC’s tergiversations. With 54 countries representing more than one billion souls and several military strifes ongoing, Ruto hammered home that “Africa’s exclusion [in the #UNSC] is not only unacceptable, unfair, and grossly unjust; it also undermines the very credibility of the United Nations.”

In order to reinforce the #FinancialSovereignty of Africa, the African Union is championing the setting up of three transformative institutions: (i) African Central Bank, (ii) African Monetary Fund, and (iii) African Investment Bank.

The African Central Bank will work toward a single currency for the whole of the continent to free dependence on foreign currency for intra-African trade. The African Monetary Fund will have the mandate to stabilize African economies and promote true financial sovereignty. Lastly, the African Investment Bank will be designed to mobilize financial resources to accelerate the 3i’s — infrastructure, #industrialization, and integration — for Africa to fulfill its potential.

In addition, the African Credit Rating Agency (#ACRA) will provide assessment which is closer to the realities, values and uniqueness of Africa. For too long, other international rating agencies have displayed a bias toward Africa. Just recently, the African Union (AU) ratified the decision to seat the ACRA in Mauritius.

Ruto expressed his full endorsement for the establishment of the Alliance of African Multilateral Financial Institutions, including the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), Trade and Development Bank (TDB), Shelter Afrique, Africa Re, African Trade and Investment Development Insurance, and ZEP-RE. The aim of the Alliance is to scale up financing and (re)insurance capabilities based upon African terms.