The President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has announced his country’s full support for an initiative led by John Dramani Mahama at the United Nations to formally declare the transatlantic slave trade as the gravest crime against humanity.

The endorsement is seen as highly significant, given that Brazil is home to the largest population of people of African descent outside the African continent, strengthening the moral and historical weight behind the proposal.

In a Facebook post on Sunday, March 22, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa shared details of the development, expressing optimism about the growing international backing for the resolution.

“Our reparatory justice coalition is getting bigger and better — we are confident of victory at the UN on the 25th of March, 2026,” he stated.

Mr Ablakwa also conveyed appreciation to President Lula for the engagement, which took place on the sidelines of the CELAC-Africa Summit in Colombia.

“I am most grateful to President Lula for the opportunity to engage him in the margins of the ongoing CELAC-AFRICA Summit in Colombia. Reparatory justice shall be achieved,” he added.

Supporters of the initiative believe that formally recognising the transatlantic slave trade as a crime against humanity would represent a significant step towards advancing the global reparatory justice agenda, with confidence growing ahead of the United Nations vote scheduled for March 25, 2026.