ACCRA, Nov. 22 — Delegates at a recently concluded pan-African conference in Accra, the Ghanaian capital, have added their voices to calls for reparations and justice for the African continent.
The International Conference of Pan-African Progressive Forces, convened by the Pan-African Progressive Front (PPF) from Tuesday to Wednesday, brought together hundreds of policymakers, scholars, and activists to deliberate on reparations and the complete liberation of the African continent.
In the Accra Declaration on Reparatory Justice, adopted by the conference, the delegates stressed their position on the importance of reparation as a necessity for justice for the continent, which is essential to healing historical wounds, dismantling entrenched inequities, and creating a more just international order.
The four-point declaration stated that reparation is critical in the collective effort to address the consequences of the historical injustices against Africa.
“Reparative justice constitutes a central element in the collective efforts to restore dignity, address the consequences of historical injustices, and strengthen solidarity among the peoples of Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, and the global African diaspora,” the declaration stressed.
To strengthen efforts to demand reparations for the continent, the delegates pledged to create a pan-African institutional architecture for reparatory policy and expressed their readiness to collaborate with the continental body, the African Union (AU), and international partners to drive the agenda for reparations.
While addressing the conference, Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama, also the AU champion for reparations, highlighted the urgent priorities facing the continent: economic transformation, technological sovereignty, climate justice, regional integration, and democratic accountability.
Mahama urged African leaders, youth, and workers to recommit to the ideals that guided the liberation struggle eight decades ago.
“Africans will determine Africa‘s destiny,” he said. In the second declaration adopted by the conference, the Accra Declaration, the delegates stressed that the continent’s complete liberation depends on full political and economic unification, insisting that the wealth of the continent must be owned and managed for the benefit of its people both at home and in the diaspora.
“Africa shall reclaim full control of its natural resources, land, and strategic industries. Africa shall adopt and implement a continental industrialization plan, prioritizing technology and value-added production,” said the second declaration.
Kwesi Pratt Jr., a member of the PPF organizing committee, urged the current generation of Africans to unite in building a new Africa, which would have a stronger voice in the United Nations.
The PPF is a continental and global pan-African platform dedicated to promoting justice, unity, human rights, transformative leadership, and the advancement of African peoples worldwide. (Xinhua)
