African and Caribbean leaders have adopted a comprehensive 19-point reparations plan, demanding financial compensation, debt cancellation, and formal apologies from countries that benefited from the transatlantic slave trade. The framework, finalized at a conference in Ghana, also seeks the return of looted cultural artifacts and ancestral remains, alongside reforms to international financial institutions that proponents argue disadvantage developing nations.
The proposal, adopted by the African Union and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Commission on Reparatory Justice, is slated to be presented at the next United Nations General Assembly as African and Caribbean nations intensify their coordinated efforts for slavery reparations.
Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama, speaking at the conference, stated that while current generations cannot be held personally responsible for the atrocities of the slave trade, history demands an inherited responsibility. The plan does not specify which countries should provide compensation or issue apologies.
Beyond financial and debt relief, the plan advocates for climate justice financing, expanded citizenship pathways for individuals in the African diaspora, and a "right of return" for descendants of enslaved Africans. It also urges African nations to preserve former slave forts and castles as memorial sites.
Advocates estimate that between the 15th and 19th centuries, approximately 12.5 million Africans were forcibly transported across the Atlantic. Supporters of reparations maintain that the repercussions of slavery continue to affect Africa and the Caribbean generations later.
The conference followed a UN vote in March that recognized the transatlantic slave trade as the "gravest crime against humanity." While the resolution passed with 123 votes, the U.S., Israel, and 52 other nations abstained or voted against it. According to Reuters, the U.S. and the European Union expressed concerns that the resolution could create a hierarchy of crimes against humanity.
Notable attendees at the conference included heads of state from Namibia, Liberia, Senegal, Barbados, and Sao Tome and Principe, along with senior officials from several other countries. French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the gathering virtually, acknowledging the suffering caused by slavery and stating that reparations should not be viewed as a definitive conclusion but rather as an ongoing process.