By Hannah Dadzie
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has called for urgent and coordinated global action to secure reparative justice for Africa and people of African descent, saying the time has come to move beyond moral appeals to concrete outcomes.
Opening the Diaspora Summit 2025 at the Accra International Conference Centre, Mr. Ablakwa said the gathering must mark a decisive shift in the long-standing struggle for reparations, describing the demand as both a moral imperative and a political responsibility. He stressed that the historical injustices of slavery, colonialism, and racial exploitation continue to shape contemporary inequalities across Africa and the diaspora.
“The call for reparations is not merely about the past. It is about reclaiming the African future through justice, healing and coordinated action,” the Minister said.
Mr. Ablakwa reaffirmed Ghana’s recognition of the diaspora as the country’s “17th region,” noting that centuries of forced separation had failed to break the bonds between Africans on the continent and those in the diaspora. He said Ghana’s foreign policy is rooted in unwavering solidarity and Pan-Africanism, principles that guide the country’s engagement with the global community.
The Foreign Affairs Minister highlighted Ghana’s humanitarian diplomacy, pointing to the country’s significant contribution of troops to United Nations peacekeeping missions and recent support extended to countries including Palestine, Sudan, Cuba, and Jamaica. According to Mr. Ablakwa, Ghana’s external relations are guided not by how much the country can extract from others, but by how much support and compassion it can offer.
As a practical demonstration of Ghana’s commitment to diaspora inclusion, Mr. Ablakwa disclosed that registered participants of the summit were granted free visas by Ghanaian missions worldwide on the instruction of President John Dramani Mahama, who also serves as the African Union’s Champion for Reparations.
He urged participants to draw inspiration from the Pan-African Congress convened in Manchester eight decades ago by Ghana’s founding President, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, and other Pan-African leaders, describing the current moment as a defining chapter in the global struggle for justice.
Mr. Ablakwa called on Africans and people of African descent to ensure that history records the Accra summit as the point at which the global African family united to demand justice for what he described as “the greatest crime against humanity.”
As the summit continues, the message from Accra is clear: the “African family” is no longer asking for permission to seek justice. They are organizing, legislating, and demanding it.
“Our children will be the beneficiaries of our refusal to be defined by the wounds of the past and our strength to join forces as one global African family,” Mr. Ablakwa said.
The Diaspora Summit seeks to reignite Pan-Africanism as a guiding framework for engaging diaspora communities in national development, foster strategic partnerships among government, the private sector, and development agencies, strengthen cultural and historical bonds, and chart pathways for reclaiming Africa’s future through justice, healing, and sustainable development.
