NewzUNITED NATIONS (CMC)– St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Godwin Friday used his first address to the United Nations General Assembly on Friday to call for reform of the international system, including changes to the UN Security Council and global climate financing arrangements. Friday, who took office following the November 2025 general election, also renewed calls for an end to the United States embargo on Cuba and for reparatory justice for slavery and the genocide of indigenous peoples. Addressing the 81st Session of the UN General Assembly, the Vincentian leader said confidence in multilateral institutions had been weakened, while small and vulnerable states continue to carry a disproportionate burden from climate change, economic shocks and international conflicts.
He said countries should not abandon the United Nations because of its shortcomings, but should instead work to reform the institution. Friday backed long standing demands for changes to the UN Security Council, saying its present structure continued to reflect the global power arrangements of 1945 rather than contemporary geopolitical realities. He said Africa should have at least one permanent seat, with the same rights and privileges as existing permanent members, warning that failure to address the imbalance would reinforce concerns that global governance was driven more by power than fairness.
Friday also called for a woman to lead the United Nations, noting that all nine secretaries-general since the organisation’s establishment have been men. He endorsed Guyanese diplomat Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett as his country’s preferred candidate for the post, describing her as a strong advocate for developing countries and small states. On climate change, Friday said the threat facing Small Island Developing States (SIDS) was not a distant possibility but a recurring economic and financial emergency.
He cited the destruction caused by Hurricane Beryl in July 2024, saying a few hours of extreme weather could destroy infrastructure and livelihoods built over decades and force governments to borrow repeatedly to finance reconstruction. He renewed calls for the full implementation of a multidimensional vulnerability index to help determine access to concessional financing, arguing that income-based classifications fail to reflect the exposure and limited capacity of small island states t…
Summary from source