Kacou Houadja Léon Adom, Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Integration and Ivorians Abroad, of Côte d’Ivoire, celebrated “two illustrious sons of the African continent”, Secretaries-General Boutros-Boutros Ghali and Kofi Annan, who “radically transformed” the Organization. Describing an institution “at a cross‑roads”, he emphasized a crisis of trust and the weakening of multilateralism, calling on Member States to “revive solidarity”.  He decried the paralysis of the Security Council, which “confines the United Nations and regional organizations to powerlessness”, pushing away any prospect for lasting resolution of global conflicts and threats to international peace and security.  Faced with the impasse in the negotiation process for several decades, he reiterated a call for Council reform, above all granting Africa its rightful place across all categories.

He further urged for reform of the Bretton Woods institutions and, more broadly, the global financial architecture. Welcoming Africa’s entry into the Group of 20 as “a major step forward”, he called for mobilization of bilateral and multilateral partners in order to address the severe decline in resources devoted to financing development, particularly in the countries of the South. He expressed recognition and gratitude to the United Nations, which, through the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI), has significantly contributed to the country’s return to peace after a decade of sociopolitical crisis.  Côte d'Ivoire is now a secure country that welcomes, in decent conditions of dignity, several thousand people fleeing terrorist attacks in the Sahel region.

Economically, GDP growth “is dynamic” in Côte d’Ivoire, putting it in the top three countries in the world having recorded the most significant progress on the global index of Sustainable Development Goals, between 2015 and 2024 — the country with the strongest improvement in Africa, reaching fourth place on the world’s Human Development Index.  The political environment is peaceful, thanks to important reforms to modernize political life — which allow political parties and civil society to freely conduct their work throughout the national territory.  The human rights situation is “satisfactory”, he noted, and being consolidated thanks to the reaffirmed independence of the judiciary, the strengthening of the regulative and institutional framework, and streamlined access to justice.  The country now intends to lock in democratic values and consolidate institutions.