Keypoints:
- AU extends reparations focus through 2036
- Mahama calls for global partnerships
- Ghana, Togo to host UNGA reparations event
PRESIDENT John Dramani Mahama has declared the dawn of a new era for reparative justice in Africa, calling on global partners to join a united, decade-long campaign to correct historic wrongs. Speaking at the African Union’s 7th Mid-Year Coordination Meeting in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, Mahama—serving as the AU Champion for Reparations—outlined progress under the Union’s 2025 theme: Justice for Africans and People of African Descent through Reparations.
‘Africa’s call for reparative justice is no longer a whisper—it is a unified demand grounded in historical truth, moral clarity and our unwavering commitment to dignity,’ he told the assembly of heads of state and AU officials.
He hailed tangible progress made by the AU Commission and Member States, noting that the campaign was gaining momentum continent-wide.
AU to focus on reparations until 2036
A major milestone was the AU Executive Council’s recent decision to extend the reparations initiative for a full decade—from 2026 to 2036.
‘This undoubtedly affords us, as a Union, the opportunity to sustain the momentum for the realisation of this noble cause,’ Mahama said. ‘We can now map out well-thought-out strategies to mobilise adequate resources to champion implementation of the theme domestically.’
The decade-long extension signals the AU’s commitment to embedding reparative justice into continental development and diplomacy.
Global solidarity a moral imperative
Mahama called on the international community to join the AU in advancing the reparations agenda, describing it as a necessary step toward a fairer global order.
‘We call upon all nations, within and beyond Africa, to partner with us in shaping a more just and equitable world for the sons and daughters of the motherland,’ he declared.
He emphasised that reparations are not merely symbolic but central to healing and restoring African identity, agency and dignity.
‘Restitution to the African, therefore, is restoration of our full human dignity,’ he said. ‘This movement is about healing deep civilisational wounds and restoring to African peoples our rightful agency in shaping our past, present and future.’
Dignity, identity, and future action
Mahama warned that without acknowledging historical erasure, Africa’s development and unity would remain incomplete.
‘We cannot speak of development without identity or speak of unity without acknowledging the erasure that has fractured our heritage,’ he argued.
He also encouraged closer collaboration with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), highlighting the shared legacy and future of people of African descent globally.
To build global momentum, Mahama announced that Ghana and Togo will co-host a high-level reparations event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September 2025.
‘As we do more to correct historical wrongs, we are reasserting our full humanity. We are reaffirming our sovereignty. We are reigniting the flame of dignity that has always burned within the African soul,’ he concluded, reaffirming Ghana’s unwavering support for the campaign.
