There are moments in history when the earth trembles under the weight of a truth buried for too long. Accra, from June 17 to 19, 2026, may have been one of those moments. On the coast that served for centuries as the embarkation point for millions of our ancestors into the hell of the slave trade, heads of state, jurists, activists, and representatives of the African diaspora gathered for the Next Steps Conference on Reparatory Justice to build on UN Resolution A/RES/80/250, which was adopted on March 25, 2026. As the first document in the UN’s 80-year history dedicated to slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, they wanted to ensure it leads to real action rather than remaining a dead letter.

Let us begin with what deserves to be acknowledged. Ghana, the symbolic gateway of the slave trade, is here staking its credibility as a pan-African leader. President Mahama did not convene this summit for appearances. His formula, which became the rallying cry of Accra, rings as a warning: Reparative justice “will not be handed to us. Like political independence, it must be asserted, pursued and won through determination and unity.” These words carry the direct lineage of Kwame Nkrumah.

The conference concluded with the adoption of the 19-point Accra Commitment for Reparatory Justice, which provides for measures of restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, institutional reform, and guarantees of non-repetition. Three international committees were established: Global Advisory Group and Legal Group on Reparatory Justice, and the Expert Group on the Restitution of Cultural Property.

For the first time, monitoring mechanisms exist on paper. It is........

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