UN says rebuilding global trust requires African leadership and meaningful youth participation

A stronger African voice in international decision-making and greater participation by young people are essential to restoring confidence in global institutions, a senior United Nations official said Thursday.

Ahunna Eziakonwa, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser to the Secretary-General, spoke at a leadership meeting in Nairobi on rebuilding trust in multilateralism. The meeting precedes the Trust Summit scheduled for October 21–23.

She said international institutions could not expect to regain public confidence while countries affected by their decisions continued to question their influence over how those decisions were made. Africa, she said, should help shape the international order rather than simply receive decisions and programmes developed elsewhere.

“Africa is not asking for a seat at someone else’s table anymore. Africa is a co-architect of a system that is renewed, and not only repaired,” Eziakonwa said. “The starting point for trust is to treat Africa as a shaper of our common future, and not as a recipient of global change.”

Her comments come amid continuing concerns about the distribution of power in multilateral institutions, Africa’s representation in global decision-making and the gap between pledges on climate finance and development assistance and the resources delivered.

For African countries, the debate also concerns access to development finance and the rules governing the global economy. Eziakonwa said international reform must be accompanied by accountability within African governments, which should deliver on commitments in agriculture, education and public services while holding their external partners to account.

She argued that trust requires evidence of progress and clear responsibility for commitments.

“Trust is not rebuilt by grand declaration. It’s rebuilt by commitment, one commitment after another, each with a named owner, a timeline, and a date on which we report back,” she said. “That is what the Nairobi Call to Action and its framework for action are designed to do.”

The Nairobi meeting is bringing together governments, international organisations, civil society, businesses and young people to discuss how commitments can be agreed and implementation monitored.

Kenya’s Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Abraham Korir Sing’Oei, said institutions needed to involve a broader range of participants in decision-making, including groups outside government.

“If we are serious about rebuilding trust, states must open the door to greater engagement with society, and large institutions must make room for non-state actors,” Sing’Oei said. “That is what the Trust Summit is designed to be: a space where we are co-creators and co-equals in building a more trustworthy future.”

Young people, whose economic prospects and political participation will be shaped by decisions made today, must also be able to contribute meaningfully to the future of multilateral institutions.

Deborah Ndanu Nzomo, secretary-general of Kenya Model United Nations, said institutions could not expect young people to trust them unless they showed confidence in their ability to contribute.

“The future of multilateralism depends not only on whether young people believe in its institutions, but also on whether those institutions demonstrate that they believe in young people,” Nzomo said. “Trust must be mutual.”

The October summit faces the challenge of turning these principles into action that can be independently assessed. Proposed outcomes include a Nairobi Statement on Global Trust, a summit report, a Trust Barometer dashboard, a joint task force to monitor implementation and a report examining Africa’s trust landscape.

Whether the proposals lead to lasting change will depend on governments and institutions making clear commitments, reporting progress and accepting scrutiny when they fall short.

For Africa, the issue extends beyond restoring confidence in individual institutions. It is about helping shape the rules of international cooperation while ensuring that governments earn the trust of the people they represent.

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