The Vice President of Ghana, Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, has delivered a heartfelt welcome address to President John Dramani Mahama, following his return from a significant international engagement marked by diplomatic success and global recognition.
Welcoming the President, she described the moment as both historic and relevant to contemporary global discourse.
“I welcome Your Excellency, our President, John Dramani Mahama, back home. This moment is historically significant and important for the present. The recent adoption of the United Nations resolution on the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade brings clarity to a long-standing debate,” she stated.
She emphasized that the resolution firmly establishes the gravity of the transatlantic slave trade. “It captures in clear terms the gravity and criminality of the transatlantic slave trade. It places that recognition on record and at the highest level of global deliberation,” she noted.
Reflecting on Ghana’s historical sites, the Vice President underscored their enduring significance. “The dungeons, courtyards, caves, defence walls, slave markets and the door of no return are not symbols constructed after the fact, but structures that exist as a real and unsettling memory.
For many Africans, these sites are part of our national consciousness. For others across the diaspora, they stand for return, reflection and acknowledgement,” she said.
She described the resolution as a major milestone achieved through sustained effort.
“Though those places have held long in stone, this resolution now recalls in principle this is a huge achievement. Your Excellency, this outcome demanded persistent engagement over time. History must be acknowledged clearly if it is to be taken seriously,” she added.
The Vice President acknowledged that while the resolution does not fully address longstanding inequalities, it creates a foundation for meaningful dialogue. “While a resolution does not resolve the significant inequalities rooted in this history, it establishes a shared language, reduces ambiguity and makes certain issues harder to silence,” she explained.
Highlighting its implications for Ghana, she called for both international engagement and domestic responsibility. “For Ghana, the implications are both external and internal.
Externally, it strengthens the basis for continued engagement on heritage and development. Internally, it challenges us to preserve and present this history with accuracy, discipline and a full awareness of its relevance,” she stated.
She commended the President’s perseverance and leadership in achieving the milestone. “Your Excellency, we acknowledge the effort that went into achieving this milestone. We also recognize that this is part of a dialogue that will need more patience, coordination and determination over time,” she noted.
The Vice President further congratulated President Mahama on his recent international honour.
“Congratulations as well, Your Excellency, on receiving the International Statesperson Award conferred on you only two days ago by the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia in recognition of your distinguished leadership in international affairs,” she said.
She concluded with a message of national pride and admiration: “With respect and pride, Your Excellency, John Dramani Mahama, we welcome you back home.”
Story: Patrick Asford Boadu
