Africa is calling for “meaningful reparations” from Britain for exploiting the people and the land across the continent. The African Union, headed up by Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, has joined the campaign asking for reparations for “historic crimes” from “former colonial powers”. During the Ethiopian summit of African and Caribbean leaders this week, the 55-state bloc demanded “reparatory justice and true liberation”.
The African Union is set to produce its own reparation requests, in addition to the trillions in compensation for slavery that the Caribbean nations are asking for. Mr Ali Youssouf said that Africa and the Caribbean plan to work together to “honour our ancestors, to uplift our descendants and reclaim our shared destiny in freedom, justice and unity”.
Britain could see demands for reparations not only relating to the slave trade, but “colonialism” broadly, as well as ongoing “structural and systemic injustice”.
Reparations could include the return of cultural artefacts from the UK to Africa, compensations for the effects of climate change and reforms of global economic practices.
The bloc has cited “economic disparities between Africa and the Global North” as one form of injustice, which was perpetuated through “exploitative practices”.
In terms of climate change, the Union also says “industrialised nations in the Global North bear historical responsibility for environmental degradation”.
In the UK, museums have already made moves to return artefacts including the Benin Bronzes and Ashanti gold. The African Union says “returning stolen artefacts to their rightful owners in African nations is a step toward cultural restoration and healing”.
The demands will be for any former colonial powers in Africa, which include Britain, France, Portugal, Spain, Germany, and Belgium.
The African Union has been developing policies for reparation over the past eight months, the Telegraph reports, as part of the “Year of Reparations”.
Over the past decade, the Caribbean Community (Caricom) has demanded compensation for slavery and offered a “10-point plan” to former colonial powers. As well as money, the bloc asked for formal apologies, debt relief and help with economic development and education.
The African Union is now looking to catch up with Caricom, it is understood, following a series of talks between the two blocs dating back to 2023.
Predecessors to Sir Keir Starmer have pushed back against previous efforts to secure reparative payments. David Lammy was set to host a “Caricom forum” while he was the Foreign Secretary, yet plans were delayed due to the conflict between Israel and Iran.