African and Caribbean Nations Renew Call for Slavery Reparations

African and Caribbean countries have renewed demands for formal apologies and reparations from nations that benefited from the transatlantic slave trade, following a three-day conference in Accra focused on advancing reparatory justice.

The meeting concluded with endorsement of a 19-point “Next Steps” framework, which includes calls for comprehensive debt relief, restitution of looted cultural property, and the creation of a global reparations fund. Delegates also emphasized the lasting and disproportionate impact of slavery on African women and girls.

The push follows a recent United Nations resolution adopted earlier this year that recognized transatlantic slavery as the “gravest crime against humanity” and urged member states to consider contributing to a reparations mechanism. Between the 15th and 19th centuries, an estimated 12–15 million African people were forcibly taken to the Americas through the transatlantic slave trade.