At the urging of Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, delegates representing countries across the globe agreed to establish a Global Reparation Fund that would ensure compensation for millions of descendants of enslaved peoples.
Akufo-Addo gave remarks at a four-day reparations summit in Ghana’s capital city of Accra, stating it’s long past time for reparations to be distributed to the African continent and the African Diaspora for the devastating impacts of the “transatlantic slave trade.”
“It is now time to revive and intensify the discussions about reparations for Africa. Indeed, the time is long overdue,” the president told the summit crowd.
“The effects of the Slave Trade have been devastating to the African continent and to the African Diaspora, with the entire period of slavery stifling Africa’s economic, cultural and psychological progress,” Akufo-Addo explained. “You cannot quantify the effects of such tragedies, but they need to be recognized.”
Not only did slavery atrophy the social and economic growth of African peoples and their descendants, but in the years after, Western nations have made no effort to account for their role in it.
“Even before these discussions on reparations conclude, the entire continent of Africa deserves a formal apology from the European nations involved in the slave trade,” he added.”No amount of money can restore the damage caused by the transatlantic slave trade … But surely, this is a matter that the world must confront and can no longer ignore.”
The summit was put together to produce an African-led action plan for reparations, establish an African committee of experts to oversee the plan’s implementation and boost collaboration with the broader diaspora.
Delegates have not yet released how the fund will operate, but it will be backed by a committee of experts set up by the African Union Commission, which will collaborate with African nations.
Ambassador Amr…
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