Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo speech about UN’s structural flaws, slave trade and illicit flow of funds out of Africa

Speaking at the UN General Assembly in 2023, His Excellency President Nana Akufo-Addo made these important points:

• The UN is structural unjust, how can it promote justice or be an example of justice? Examples include a security council controlled by 5 countries, and institutions like the World Bank whose business is favourable to the West.
• Western powers (and also Middle-eastern) developed from resources plundered from the South, including slaves. He called for reparations and made a point that if slave owners were compensated for loss of slaves when slavery ended, why then are slaves and their communities not compensated?
• Returning of funds illicitly flowed out of Africa into developed countries, but this is often ignored because it benefits western banks, companies, governments and individuals.

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Implications for social work and development work

• International organisations, including UN organisations and professional organisations should be mindful of the injustices the UN perpetuates, challenge them and not replicate them.

• Training institutions must reform their teaching content to include these injustices and teach students that the work being done by UN agencies can never be enough if the structural and historical issues are not addressed.