Nobel Laureate Professor Wole Soyinka challenged African leaders to implement aggressive, practical strategies for reparatory justice. He spoke at the Next Steps Consultative Conference in Accra on June 18, 2026. Soyinka stressed the need to move beyond mere discussion to secure restitution for the transatlantic slave trade and colonial exploitation.
Professor Soyinka argued that Africa's pursuit of historical restitution will fail if it remains only within academic discussions and economic calculations. He stated that the psychological liberation of both continental Africans and diaspora communities must be the foundation of this global campaign. The conference was hosted by President John Dramani Mahama, who is the African Union Champion on Reparations.
This call for action comes after the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on March 25. This resolution designated the trafficking of enslaved Africans as the gravest crime against humanity. Ghana, under President Mahama, has been a key driver in gathering a global coalition for this cause. This forms a significant part of Ghana's broader push for Pan-African unity and historical redress.
Professor Soyinka specifically criticized a foreign nation's new visa policy. This policy reportedly targets countries that supported the UN resolution on reparations. He warned that penalizing the preservation of historical memory leads to international isolation. "Let us move mentally and practically towards dynamising the commemoratives which exist," Professor Soyinka said.
He added, "We have to move now beyond the performances, the discussions, the rhetoric, even the economic aspects of a retrieval of an egalitarian relationship between us and them." This suggests that real, tangible steps, not just words, are now essential. He noted that even the mental condition of the diaspora is crucial.
The Nobel Laureate expressed dismay at the foreign state’s hostile reaction, calling it a missed chance to re-examine a divisive history. He asserted that humanity naturally remembers events, both positive and negative. He questioned how any state could legitimately restrict the global pursuit of historical truth.
Professor Soyinka also warned that Africa’s moral standing to demand reparations is weakened by ongoing governance failures. He connected the tragic sight of African youth drowning in the Mediterranean Sea to "inorganic development." He also attributed this to a severe lack of vision among Africa’s ruling elites. This implies that internal issues must also be addressed for the reparations movement to gain full legitimacy.
He condemned modern forms of governance that treat citizens as disposable, linking this to historical chattel slavery and current human trafficking. Professor Soyinka shared that Nigeria’s Department of the Diaspora uses chartered rescue flights to extract nationals from modern slave markets in North Africa. He detailed how returnees often kneel and kiss the ground upon arrival, showing their profound trauma.
Professor Soyinka urged delegates, including heads of state and legal experts, to prioritize the comprehensive rehumanisation of African memory. He stressed that without actively dismantling the ongoing exploitation of youth, the pursuit of reparatory justice will remain incomplete. He specifically highlighted that the most harmful inequities impact children and youth, who are still kidnapped and sent to slave markets today.