By Ameh Gabriel
Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, has called for sweeping reforms to global multilateral institutions, warning that failure to address systemic flaws is fueling insecurity, underdevelopment, and global instability.
Speaking at the European Union African Union Ministerial Follow-Up Committee and the 3rd EU–AU Ministerial Meeting in Brussels, Ambassador Tuggar urged world leaders to move beyond rhetoric and embrace transformative reforms that confront the root causes of the world’s most pressing challenges.
The call was made public through a statement by the Minister’s Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy, Alkasim Abdulkadir.
Ambassador Tuggar identified several urgent global issues ranging from the proliferation of small arms and climate change to violent extremism, irregular migration, and the erosion of democratic institutions. He criticised the international community’s continued reliance on “recycled talking points” without tangible action, noting that such inertia has exacerbated many of these problems.
“The international framework that underpins multilateralism is more fragile today than ever before,” Tuggar said, citing the rise of non-state actors, widespread disinformation, and unregulated digital currencies as destabilizing forces.
Despite these challenges, the Minister reaffirmed Nigeria’s enduring commitment to multilateral cooperation. He cited the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Nigeria’s investment in the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and ECOWAS-led integration efforts as examples of Africa’s contributions to strengthening global collaboration.
Ambassador Tuggar also renewed Nigeria’s longstanding advocacy for United Nations reform, fairer global trade practices, and more inclusive access to international financing mechanisms. “Agencies only survive when they adapt,” he remarked, stressing that institutions must evolve or risk becoming obsolete.
Addressing the global surge in populism and hate speech, Tuggar decried the double standards in international responses to online incitement. “We were told hate speech in Africa was the price of freedom; when it happens here, arrests follow,” he said.
In closing, the Minister urged world leaders to uphold integrity, fairness, and consistency in international governance. “Truth is not a supermarket to be picked or discarded according to taste,” he warned.
Tuggar’s remarks reinforce Nigeria’s active role in pushing for a more just, accountable, and effective global order.
