Accra, Ghana – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ghana reports that the UN General Assembly has adopted a historic resolution declaring the trafficking of enslaved Africans and racialised chattel enslavement of Africans as the gravest crime against humanity.
Ghana’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Honourable Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa (MP), briefed the press on Tuesday, 31 March 2026, explaining that resolution A/RES/80/250 was championed by President John Dramani Mahama in his role as the African Union Champion on Reparations. The resolution was adopted on 25 March 2026, coinciding with the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and Transatlantic Slave Trade. A total of 123 UN member states voted in favour, three opposed, and 52 abstained.
Honourable Ablakwa said the resolution marks a shift from mere commemoration to recognition of the structural consequences of the transatlantic slave trade and the need for reparatory justice. He stressed that the trade was not voluntary, explaining: “Trade requires consent, exchange and agency. What happened was the exact opposite. Africans were captured through raids and coercion, transported in chains, confined in inhumane conditions and subjected to violence at every stage from inland capture to coastal detention to the Middle Passage across the Atlantic.” 
The minister described the system as organised human trafficking, financed through transcontinental networks and codified through legal frameworks outside Africa. While local intermediaries existed, he noted, they did not control or own the system and should not be seen as equal participants.
On reparatory justice, Honourable Ablakwa clarified that the aim is not direct payments to leaders, but addressing the long-term consequences of slavery through programmes in education, infrastructure development, and support for affected communities. He added that the resolution provides a framework for engagement on reparatory justice, including dialogue on compensation, institutional reforms, and cooperation in education, research, and cultural restitution.
The minister acknowledged the role of the African Union, CARICOM, CELAC, and all 123 member states that voted in favour. He also recognised international partners such as the Congressional Black Caucus, Pan-African Lawyers Union (PALU), NAACP, Rev. Al Sharpton, Ben Crump, Bell Ribeiro-Addy (UK), Zohran Kwame Mamdani, Prof. Sir Hilary Beckles, and Prof. Verene Shepherd, among others, for their contributions in building the coalition that led to the resolution.
