President John Dramani Mahama has stressed that global reparatory justice for the transatlantic slave trade remains incomplete unless it fully addresses the specific suffering endured by enslaved women and girls.
Speaking on June 18, 2026, at the Heads of State Session of the Next Steps High-Level Consultative Conference in Accra, he said women experienced layered exploitation that went beyond forced labour, including systemic abuse and the intergenerational use of their bodies.
He argued that any framework for truth-telling, memorialization and reparations that excludes women’s experiences would fall short of delivering meaningful justice.
Mahama also paid tribute to historical figures such as Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth, while acknowledging the countless unnamed women whose resilience helped sustain families and communities through slavery and its aftermath.
He reaffirmed Ghana’s leadership in the global reparations agenda, noting that a United Nations General Assembly resolution championed by the country had strengthened international recognition of the lasting impact of slavery.
The President further called for practical next steps, including research, education, restitution and stronger partnerships between Africa, the diaspora and the wider international community. He concluded that the measure of success would not lie in resolutions alone, but in tangible action that transforms historical recognition into enduring justice.