AU Summit: Mahama pushes Africa-wide declaration on slavery as crime against humanity

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August 10, 2026

President John Dramani Mahama has called for a unified African position on the legacy of slavery, describing racialised chattel enslavement as “the gravest crime against humanity.”
Speaking at a press conference on the sidelines of the African Union (AU) Summit on Sunday, February 15, Mahama said slavery remains prohibited under international law as a peremptory norm—meaning no state can legally justify or excuse it.
He revealed that Ghana is spearheading a continental resolution built on three pillars: historical accuracy, legal defensibility, and alignment between Africa and the diaspora.
“Our approach ensures the resolution reflects rigorous scholarship, moral clarity, and diplomatic credibility,” Mahama said, noting that Ghana undertook extensive consultations to strengthen the proposal.
The preparatory process involved global and African institutions, including UNESCO, the Global Group of Experts on Reparations, the Pan-African Lawyers Union, universities, the AU Committee of Experts on Reparations, and the AU Legal Experts Reference Group.
Earlier this month, Ghana hosted a joint meeting of the AU Committee of Experts on Reparations and the AU Legal Experts Reference Group in Accra to refine the resolution’s text. Consultations also extended to the Ghana Diaspora Summit in December 2025 to ensure inclusivity.
Following expert input, the resolution was retitled “Declaration of the Trafficking in Enslaved Africans and Racialised Chattel Enslavement of Africans as the Gravest Crime Against Humanity.” Mahama said the wording deliberately reflects the systematic trafficking of Africans, the racialised and institutional nature of chattel slavery, and its lasting global consequences.
“The resolution is not just symbolic,” he stressed. “It provides a legal and moral foundation for reparatory justice, African unity, and engagement with the global community on historical injustices that continue to shape our societies.”
Mahama added that Ghana is seeking broad support from African states and the diaspora to push the declaration through the AU framework.