President of the Republic of Ghana, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, has called for the global reparations movement to move beyond acknowledging the atrocities of slavery to implementing practical measures that address its enduring consequences.
“The central question before us is no longer whether historical injustice occurred. History has already rendered that verdict. The question now is how those injustices and their continuing effects should be addressed in a meaningful, sustainable and forward-looking manner,” he said.
Addressing a reparatory justice dialogue at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Regional Headquarters on Monday (August 3), President Mahama said the international conversation has reached a defining moment, where the focus must now be on meaningful, sustainable and forward-looking solutions.
President Mahama argued that reparatory justice extends beyond financial compensation and should include truth-telling, accountability, restitution, rehabilitation, educational opportunities, cultural cooperation and the restoration of the dignity of African people and their descendants.
He highlighted the adoption of a landmark United Nations General Assembly resolution on March 25, 2026, declaring the trafficking and racialised chattel enslavement of Africans as the gravest crime against humanity.
He described the resolution as a historic milestone that provides an international platform for advancing the reparations agenda.
The President also pointed to the June high-level consultative conference in Accra, which resulted in the ‘Next Steps Commitments on Reparatory Justice’, outlining practical measures, including strengthened international dialogue, legal reforms, cultural restitution, research cooperation and development initiatives.
He said Ghana is supporting the establishment of institutional mechanisms, including a High-Level Global Advisory Council on Reparatory Justice and expert panels on cultural restitution and legal strategy, to ensure that the movement is supported by credible scholarship, diplomacy and evidence-based policymaking.
He commended the Caribbean, particularly the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Reparations Commission and its Chairman, Sir Hilary Beckles, for providing intellectual leadership on the issue.
“Africa recognises and values your leadership,” he said, while urging greater collaboration between Africa and the Caribbean in diplomacy, historical research, youth engagement, cultural cooperation and development partnerships.
President Mahama emphasised that although history cannot be changed, its consequences can be addressed through unity, political commitment and sustained international cooperation.
“The injuries of the past cannot be erased but justice can help to heal them. Through deliberate, coordinated and principled action, we can help create conditions for a more equitable future,” he said.
President Mahama, who arrived in Jamaica on Sunday (August 2), is on a four-day State Visit at the invitation of Prime Minister, Dr. the Most Hon. Andrew Holness.
The visit coincides with Jamaica’s observance of Emancipation Day and the country’s 64th anniversary of Independence.
