Ghana seeks UN declaration of slave trade as ‘gravest crime’

The move is aimed at advancing truth, recognition and reconciliation, the African nation’s leader, John Mahama, has said

Ghana plans to submit a UN resolution declaring the transatlantic slave trade a “grievous” crime against humanity and demanding reparations. The move adds to a growing campaign across African and Caribbean states seeking redress for historical crimes.

The proposal could be tabled at the UN General Assembly as early as this month, the West African nation’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement cited by ⁠Reuters on Thursday.

“The proposed resolution seeks to recognize transatlantic slave trade as the gravest crime in the history of humankind, taking into account its scale, duration, legalization and enduring consequences,” the ministry said.

The former British colony has become one of the most vocal advocates for slavery reparations, with its leader, John Dramani Mahama, appointed by the African Union as the continent’s champion on redress.

Mahama first announced plans to push the resolution at the UN on the sidelines of an AU summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital, last month. The initiative has the backing of 40 AU member states and is only the first step, the Ghanaian president said, adding that the “truth about the story of the transatlantic slave trade must be told.”

READ MORE: Africa demands accountability for colonial crimes

The AU designated 2025 as the year of reparations, framing reparatory justice as covering financial compensation, formal acknowledgments, policy reform and the return of cultural artifacts. The 55-nation bloc has since adopted a resolution calling for slavery, colonialism and racial segregation, to be formally recognized and criminalized.

This is not the first push linked to the UN reparations debate. In 2024, the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent renewed its call for steps toward a slavery tribunal through the General Assembly.

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UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who has backed reparatory justice to overcome “generations of discrimination,” has said up to 30 million people were violently uprooted from Africa over a span of more than 400 years.

Several European states, however, oppose even opening talks on reparations, arguing that present-day governments should not be held liable for historic crimes. Britain has rejected calls for payments. The Netherlands, meanwhile, apologized in 2022 for its role in slavery and said it would make €200 million ($231 million) available for measures aimed at raising awareness and addressing its lasting effects.

READ MORE: EU nation refuses to compensate for slavery