African leaders have re-echoed demands for reparations for the transatlantic slave trade and colonialism, with intensified calls for reparative justice while criticising Western nations for their continued silence on historical crimes.

Ghana’s President, John Mahama, serving as the African Union Champion for Reparations, stressed that the slave trade was “the greatest crime against humanity,” referencing the forced displacement of over 12.5 million Africans to generate wealth for Western nations.

“We must demand reparations for the enslavement of our people and the colonisation of our land that resulted in the theft of natural resources,” President Mahama stated.

He highlighted the historical irony that Western governments “happily paid reparations to former slave owners as compensation for the loss of their ‘property,’ that is, the enslaved people themselves.”

“We recognise the value of our land and the value of our lives,” he declared.
Central African Republic President, Faustin Touadera, stated that the era of Africa’s dependence is over. He called for a fundamental shift toward sovereignty, not subordination; partnership, not exploitation.

President Touadera condemned the persistent global inequality, stating it is “unacceptable to see poverty worsening in Africa while wealth accumulates in the Northern countries,” while confirming his nation’s full support for the pan-African reparations initiative.

Bolivian President, Luis Alberto Arce Catacora, outlined specific mechanisms for addressing historical injustices, proposing the establishment of a dedicated UN commission on reparations covering “slavery, apartheid, genocide, and colonialism.”

“This commission must establish effective mechanisms to restore historical justice,” President Arce explained, detailing three core components: Financial reparations, Environmental restoration, and Restitution of stolen cultural property.

He called for those responsible for historical crimes to contribute “billions of dollars into a reparations fund” and urged unity between the African Union and CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) in confronting colonialism’s lasting effects.

The leaders expressed concern that Western countries continue to avoid meaningful dialogue on the issue, demonstrating what they characterized as a deliberate unwillingness to acknowledge historical responsibilities.