Participants at the maiden Diaspora Summit in Accra, the Ghanaian capital, late Saturday declared that what Africa seeks in the form of reparation goes beyond financial compensation.
In its final report, the summit emphasized that reparation is not an event but a process and is a legal and moral obligation—“not an act of charity or mercy.”
“No amount of financial compensation can fully remedy the damage caused by colonialism, slavery, and apartheid. Therefore, reparations must extend beyond monetary compensation,” the summit emphasized.
It was observed that despite political independence from colonial masters, colonialism has not entirely ended but persists in modern forms, including through global power relations, earned unjustly through financial architectural terms.
Moreover, the summit noted that African peoples on the continent and those in the diaspora continue to experience structural, economic, and psychological harm resulting from the colonial crisis.
The summit, therefore, urged Africans to move away from a disjointed reparations agenda and put up a unified front and a unified agenda for pursuing reparations from those who have hurt Africa.
The summit noted, however, that there were rays of hope from the Namibian experience in negotiating a deal for German “reconciliation” funds for development in Namibia, following Germany’s acknowledgment of its responsibility for the 1904-1908 Herero and Nama genocide.
In his closing remarks, Ghanaian Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa noted that Africa’s fight for reparations does not pitch the continent against any other country.
“Let us not be mistaken; nobody should distort our quest for reparation and our agenda. Yes, we seek justice and closure. But it is important to stress that these discussions will not retard our vision and passion for the development of our countries and continent,” Ablakwa stated.
He added, “With or without reparation, we shall develop our continent, create opportunities for our people, and make sure that we get that transformation our founding fathers were committed to.”