President John Dramani Mahama has used the destruction and looting of Kumasi in 1874 to highlight Ghana’s historical experience of the removal of cultural heritage during colonial conquest.

Speaking at a UN high-level side event, the President said British forces destroyed Kumasi and looted the palace of the Asantehene during the military campaign.

He said the episode formed part of a broader history in which African cultural treasures were removed from their communities and transported to museums and institutions in Europe and North America.

President Mahama said Ghana’s experience was not unique, citing the looting of cultural heritage in Benin City, Ethiopia’s Maqdala and Abomey in present-day Benin.

He said the return of the Mpomponsuo sword and other Asante heritage in 2024 showed that restitution could help restore links between historical objects and the communities that created them.

The President called for a global framework that would address the legacy of such removals through transparent provenance research, improved access to archives and mechanisms for restitution.