African and Caribbean leaders have adopted a unified 19-point reparations framework demanding financial compensation, debt cancellation, formal apologies, and the return of looted cultural artifacts from nations involved in the transatlantic slave trade. The plan, endorsed by the African Union and CARICOM’s Reparatory Justice Commission, emerged from a high-level conference in Accra, Ghana, and will be presented at the upcoming UN General Assembly. It calls for structural reforms to international financial institutions and expanded citizenship pathways for the African diaspora.

While no specific countries are named, the resolution follows a March UN vote recognizing transatlantic slavery as a 'crime against humanity,' which passed with 123 in favor—though the U.S., Israel, and 52 others voted against or abstained. Critics, including the U.S. and EU, expressed concern the resolution could create a hierarchy of atrocities. French President Emmanuel Macron, speaking virtually, acknowledged the suffering caused by slavery but cautioned reparations should not be seen as a final settlement.

Advocates estimate 12.5 million Africans were forcibly transported during the slave trade. The new framework unifies previously separate regional efforts into a single international push, emphasizing both material redress and symbolic justice, including preserving slave forts as memorial sites. The proposal also links reparations to broader demands for climate justice and global financial equity.