Africa has, for ages, sought reparations through its leaders who believed that colonizers must compensate for the disruptions and damages they caused during the broader 18th and 19th centuries.

Reparations for Africans remain a contentious topic of discussion, dating back to the days of late Pan-African thinkers like Kwame Nkrumah and Thomas Sankara, who foresaw the importance of structural decolonization.

The African Union’s 2025 theme, “Justice for Africans and People of African Descent Through Reparations,” signifies a heightened call aligned with principles of justice from a moral and ethical standpoint. Given that the past cannot be undone, this leaves one option for the continent: the payment of reparations. 

In a conversation with Tunisian economist Fadhel Kaboub, an associate professor of economics at Denison University in Ohio and president of the Global Institute for Sustainable Prosperity, an independent public policy think tank, we delve deeper into the topic of reparations.

He explains that reparations for the African continent, from an intellectual, academic, and policy standpoint, mean telling the truth, acknowledging the damage, offering a genuine apology, and then repairing the harm.

Mr. Kaboub, an author of the Substack blog Global South Perspectives, points out that it’s encouraging to see the African Union asserting a bold vision in seeking reparations.

He emphasizes that the reparations conversation must involve the people of the continent, including the diaspora, thereby linking back to slavery and the transatlantic trade.

For him, reparations for the continent mean examining history and holding colonialists accountable for their atrocities, as well as addressing the post-colonial damage inflicted on economies and ecosystems.

“Reparations are about comprehending the past, colonizers accepting their mistakes, and repairing the damages caused,” says Kaboub. He shares that his advocacy focuses on sustainable prosperity, particularly from Global South perspectives, with an emphasis on issues like debt, development, climate, and geopolitics.

Commending the AU’s call for reparations as a bold step, he opines that the way forward must be actionable, moving beyond normalized rhetoric with little follow-through.

According to Mr. Kaboub, Africa, as it stands, is more vulnerable to climate change impacts despite contributing the least to global greenhouse gas emissions.

“The financial architecture has become a daily talking point, yet little to no effort has been made to amend it. We must embrace reparations targeting priority issues like debt cancellation for climate-related damages and offering grants instead of loans for resilient infrastructure,” says Kaboub.

Africa’s Geopolitical Leverage to Address Colonial Economic Architecture

For decades, Africa has faced tragedies ranging from climate change impacts to internal conflicts, cross-border wars, and economic woes. However, one of the main challenges has been the extractive role imposed on the continent by the global economy.

This extractive economy has favored supplying raw materials and consuming industrialized goods, perpetuating colonial hierarchies. Africa, rich in critical minerals, has historically lost these resources to external regions, leaving the continent underdeveloped and further degraded by mining activities.

Mr. Kaboub argues that the consistent failure to add value to these minerals at the source, creating products for export and local sales, has hindered the continent’s development.

He urges that decolonizing the economic system is vital if Africa is to achieve sustainable development, justice, and a just transition. “Reparations for Africa must go beyond financial compensation to include structural reforms, technology transfers, and climate justice,” he says.

The Global South, if supported by the Global North through the transfer of life-saving technologies (e.g., renewable energy, clean cooking, public transportation), could decarbonize and industrialize sustainably.

However, the denial of access to these transformative technologies exemplifies the need for systemic changes in how Global South countries engage with the Global North. The lack of cooperation highlights Africa’s and the Global South’s missing geopolitical leverage to compel the Global North to act on reparations.

Fadhel Kaboub advocates for South-South strategic cooperation, leveraging competition between major economic blocs (e.g., the US, China, EU) to negotiate technology transfers and industrial policies on Africa’s terms.

Multilateral institutions like the United Nations and the Conference of Parties (COP) have been used for decades to negotiate these issues, but the outcomes often fall short. He reiterates that the Global South must create its leverage outside these institutions to achieve transformative change.

“Institutions like the UN and COP are dominated by Global North powers and are unlikely to deliver justice or reparations,” says Kaboub.

Africa’s Bargain of the Century for Reparations

Faced with dire times, the Global South is urged to form a bloc of 20+ countries composed of visionaries who will rely on their collective resources, massive population numbers, and market potential.

According to Kaboub, this bloc should focus on co-designing joint industrial policies, increasing production to meet the demands of its market.

“Through this bloc, the Global South will have bargaining power to negotiate technology transfers from countries like China, the US, and Europe,” says Kaboub.

His clarion call is for the bloc to build sovereignty in key sectors like energy, food, and technology to reduce dependency on the Global North. In his view, this is the only path for the bloc to demand debt cancellation and reparations from a position of strength.

With the largest and youngest population globally, Africa is strategically positioned to leverage its youth and resources to drive development.

Building on indigenous knowledge and grassroots innovations while industrializing is a key aspect of overcoming existing barriers. As Mr. Kaboub notes, policies must protect indigenous knowledge from appropriation and promote local innovation.

The Tunisian economist urges African youth to educate themselves about Pan-African thinkers who pushed for systemic change. He reminds young people of the need to organize, mobilize, and advocate for systemic change from the bottom up while holding leaders accountable for transformative policies.