Ghana President John Dramani Mahama says France and Germany are among the countries that have approached Ghana about slavery reparations, but he has pushed back against the idea that centuries of exploitation can be settled with a cheque.
Speaking to Financial Times Editor Alec Russell at the FT Africa Summit in London on October 21, Mahama said discussions were opening up about what meaningful repair might involve. He pointed to the return of cultural artifacts, recognition of historical wrongdoing, and better economic prospects for the Global South. No compensation deal has been announced.
‘Not a simple payoff’
Russell asked the question that so often follows calls for reparations: who would pay, how would it work and was there a figure that could settle the claim?
Mahama did not offer one.
‘We’ve had approaches from Germany, from France, from several countries to have a discussion,’ he said during the interview.
‘I don’t think that a simple payoff is what we demand for years of slavery,’ he added. ‘There are many other things.’
He did not identify a negotiating timetable or say whether either government had put forward specific proposals. For now, the approaches signal a willingness to talk, not an agreement to pay reparations.
The UN vote behind the talks
Mahama linked the new interest to Ghana’s campaign at the United Nations. On March 25, the General Assembly adopted a Ghana-led resolution declaring the trafficking of enslaved Africans and racialised chattel enslavement of Africans the ‘gravest crime against humanity’.
The vote was 123 in favour, three against and 52 abstentions. Both France and Germany abstained. The declaration carries political weight, but it is not legally binding and creates no automatic obligation to pay compensation.
That difference matters. European governments may be willing to discuss the legacy of slavery without accepting every part of Ghana’s argument about how it should be addressed.
France has already taken a step
The exchanges did not begin in London. In May, French President Emmanuel Macron announced plans for a joint international research commission with Ghana to examine the legacy of enslavement and recommend possible responses.
It marked a more open conversation in Paris, though Macron did not offer a financial settlement. Mahama’s latest comments provide less detail about Germany: he did not say who had approached Ghana or what Berlin might be prepared to discuss.
What would repair actually mean?
For Mahama, one starting point is the return of cultural objects taken from Africa. Some artefacts have already been returned, but many remain in overseas collections. He has previously called for clearer rules on returning African heritage and human remains.
He also talked about modern slavery and the need to improve economic opportunities across the Global South. ‘A strong Global South is not a threat to the West,’ he told Russell. ‘A strong Global South is an advantage.’
That wider agenda has been gathering momentum. African and Caribbean leaders met in Accra in June to consider practical steps on reparatory justice, while Ghana subsequently took a roadmap for action back to the UN.
Mahama’s message was that the conversation cannot end with a number. But turning that into something tangible will require harder decisions: which objects will be returned, what governments are prepared to acknowledge and whether economic commitments will follow.
