Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama held talks with a global delegation seeking reparations for transatlantic slavery and colonialism, who urged him to rally other African leaders to choose “courage over comfort” and support the growing movement.
The delegation, made up of experts from Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, Latin America, and the United States, presented Mahama with priority actions under the African Union’s (AU) reparations agenda, it said in a statement on Friday.
In February, the AU launched a drive to create a “unified vision” on what reparations may look like, from financial compensation and formal acknowledgments of past wrongs to policy reforms.
At least 12.5 million Africans were kidnapped and forcibly transported by European ships, then sold into slavery from the 15th to the 19th centuries. Advocates say action is needed to confront today’s legacies, including racism.
Calls for reparations have gained momentum but there is also a growing backlash. Many European leaders have opposed even discussing the matter, with opponents arguing today’s states and institutions should not be held responsible for historical wrongs.
While Ghana has been at the forefront of reparations advocacy in Africa, the delegation emphasised the need for “strategic coherence and unity” among political leaders across the continent.
They urged Mahama to encourage other leaders to “choose courage over comfort” by standing with civil society and affected communities in Africa and the diaspora in demanding reparations.
The delegation also met on Wednesday with Ghana’s Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa and Mahama’s envoy on reparations Ekwow Spio-Garbrah.
At a European Union–AU summit in Luanda, Angola’s capital, last month, leaders from both regions acknowledged the “untold suffering” caused by slavery and colonialism but stopped short of committing to reparations.
During the summit, Ghana’s Vice President Jane Opoku-Agyemang urged EU member states to support a UN resolution Ghana is preparing to recognise slavery as one of the “gravest crimes against humanity”.
