RECENTLY, the United Nations (UN) organisation has been celebrating activities marking its 80th anniversary. It was indeed a glamorous event as the UN General Assembly Hall this year hosted congratulatory messages, reflections and expressions of hope as the world body commemorated the landmark. More than 140 world leaders were in New York to mark the organisation’s 80th birthday. The United Nations will be 80 years old on October 24, and this milestone has been marked by various events this year, including the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, an annual gathering of UN member states and a major diplomatic event to discuss global issues. It was held last month. The UN Charter Day was held on June 26, 2025, to commemorate the signing of the UN Charter. On October 24, 2025, the annual celebration of the UN Charter’s entry into force, which marks the UN’s 80th anniversary, will be held.
Taking a look at the history of the body during the General Assembly, the president of the assembly, Annalena Baerbock, recalled that it was founded in the aftermath of two world wars and the unspeakable horrors of the Holocaust, and at a time when 72 territories were still under colonial rule. She added that the signing of the UN Charter on June 26, 1945 was a promise from leaders to their peoples, and from nations to one another, that humanity had learnt from its darkest chapters. However, she expressed worry that with the crises in several parts of the world, including Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan and Haiti, not to mention the ‘unfiltered hatred online’, the hours indeed feel dark once again. Her words: ‘As we mark 80 years of our United Nations, we are once again standing at a crossroads. We cannot take the easy path and simply give up. We have to choose the right path; to show the world that we can be better together.’
Also speaking on the occasion, the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, referenced the horrors of the past when many of the first staff members and delegates bore visible wounds from war but were determined nevertheless to chart a new world order and a path towards peace and prosperity. According to him, the founders of the organisation were not idealists but had seen the worst of humanity and knew that ‘peace is the most courageous, the most practical, the most necessary pursuit of all.’ He added: ‘In building the United Nations, they created something extraordinary; a place where all nations – large and small – could come together to solve problems that no country can solve alone.’ Yet, as he observed, the principles of the UN are under unprecedented assault, saying: ‘As we meet, civilians are targeted, and international law trampled. Furthermore, poverty and hunger are rising as progress to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) falters, while the climate crisis rages. At the same time, we are moving towards a multipolar world. To meet these challenges, we must not only defend the United Nations – but strengthen it.’
That summation is indeed hard to fault. At its inception, 50 countries met in San Francisco, United States, in the aftermath of World War II to sign the UN Charter. That was in June 1945. By October 24 of that year, the charter came into force. Over the years, the UN has played pivotal roles in advancing the cause of humanity. Among other achievements, it has promoted and protected human rights. The UN oversaw the transition of more than 80 former colonies to independent states, especially during the 1950s to 1970s, reshaping the international order, and its peacekeeping and conflict resolution efforts saw the deployment of missions that helped to stabilise post-conflict regions, including the Middle East and Africa. The UN pioneered the concept of ‘peacekeeping’ under UN authority. It is also generally acknowledged that the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights set a universal standard, followed by numerous treaties safeguarding civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights. The much touted Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), global frameworks that drove progress in diverse areas is the brainchild of the UN, as are landmark agreements such as the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Refugee Convention, and the Paris Climate Accord, among others. For decades, the UN has coordinated global responses to famines, pandemics, and natural disasters, delivering food, medical supplies, and shelter to millions.
Of course, the organisation has faced so many challenges, including the inefficacy of the Security Council, where veto power and political divisions often block decisive action on conflicts; budgetary shortfalls that limit peacekeeping and humanitarian operations; tensions between major powers like the United States, China and Russia) that undermine its resolutions of critical issues; the continuing rise of global emissions continue to rise, and the UN struggles to enforce climate commitments, among others. Indeed, critics like the US President Donald Trump see the organisation as a failure for failing to actualise world peace. Said the US president: ‘What is the purpose of the United Nations?All they seem to do is write a really strongly worded letter. It’s empty words, and empty words don’t solve war.’
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But the UN has been a force for good in many ways, even if there is a lot of room for improvements and a major tinkering with its mission and structure. Like any human organisation, the UN is a mixture of the good, bad and ugly. Still, any dispassionate study of its impact since its inception cannot but acknowledge its landmark roles in world affairs. Warts and all, the UN has been a stabilizing factor. It has afforded nations and organisations a global platform to express their desires, fears and frustrations, such that it is difficult to see voices of marginalised groups that have not been heard on its platforms around the world. It is true that in spite of its existence, there is instability in different parts of the world. And to be sure, the cold war between the Eastern and Western power blocs is still there, and may never be thawed. It is playing out in places like Turkey and Ukraine, among others. But to dismiss the UN’s efforts outright is to refuse to acknowledge reality.
We salute the UN at 80. Its efforts to enhance peace in the world are commendable. We urge it, going forward, to set up structures for addressing the concerns that critics have, and to work harder at fulfilling its mission. As the UN Secretary-General has said, it is time for the international community to rise to this moment with clarity, courage, and conviction and realise the promise of peace. The consequence of failure will be the emergence of much more divided nations, global instability, and an elusive search for peace.