Kenya on Thursday, June 18, won a seat at the UN Security Council after beating Djibouti in the second round of hotly contested vote.

UN member states held a second round of voting on Thursday to determine whether Kenya or Djibouti would win a non-permanent seat on the Security Council for the next two years.

In the initial round earlier on Wednesday, Kenya had garnered 113 votes against Djibouti’s 78.

But, to be declared the winner, UN rules demand at least two-thirds of the votes of eligible UN member states.

So, another vote had to be cast and, with 191 of 193 countries voting, Kenya scored 129 votes, beating Djibouti which got 62 votes.

Kenya now joins Tunisia and Niger as Africa’s representatives on the UN Security Council, a 15-member body with the primary responsibility of maintaining international peace and security.

The Security Council has 10 non-permanent members in addition to the five permanent members, Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.

The non-permanent membership slots are rotated between member states every after two years.

Kenya's win on Thursday means that from January 2021, it will return to the UN’s most powerful organ after 23 years.

Four other countries; India, Mexico, Ireland and Norway were elected on Wednesday.