The Netherlands and Germany move to return over 2,000 artefacts to Ghana

A landmark handover in Accra

The Netherlands and Germany have signalled their intention to return more than 2,000 cultural artefacts to Ghana, taken during the colonial period. The announcement was made by Ghana’s minister of foreign affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, during the three-day Next Steps Conference held in the Ghanaian capital last week (17–19 June).

In a symbolic gesture, Jeroen Verheul, the Dutch ambassador, formally handed over a catalogue of 2,000 objects to Ghana’s president, John Dramani Mahama. Germany, meanwhile, has identified two war drums and two war horns connected to the Kpando traditional area for restitution, according to a statement from its embassy in Accra. Further details on the objects to be returned from both countries are still forthcoming.

Verheul framed the Dutch approach as demand-led and rooted in a wider reckoning with historical wrongs. “The government considers such requests part and parcel of a much-needed process of addressing historical injustices,” he told. “Returning objects often provide a positive boost to cultural and museum cooperation, allowing us to tell these important stories together.” He added that the Netherlands is committed to making its collections more transparent through digitisation and the publication of provenance data.

UN resolution casts a long shadow

The Accra conference was convened to forge what the Ghanaian government described as “a common framework of actionable commitments” in response to a landmark United Nations resolution passed on 26 March. That resolution, led by Ghana, declares the transatlantic slave trade the “gravest crime against humanity”.

Hosted by President Mahama, the programme brought together voices from across the Global South and beyond. Among the speakers were Mia Amor Mottley, prime minister of Barbados, and Bassirou Diomaye Faye, president of Senegal. French president Emmanuel Macron contributed a recorded message. Discussions centred on a global strategic framework for reparatory justice, including the proposed creation of an expert panel focused on the restitution of cultural artefacts.

The closing day of the conference coincided with Juneteenth, the annual commemoration of the abolition of slavery in the United States. Delegates took part in a re-enactment of the slave trade at Christiansborg Castle in Accra, once a major hub of the trade. Ablakwa also announced that Denmark has agreed to help preserve the castle, originally built in 1661, so that it “withstands as enduring evidence of the atrocities that occurred”.

Shifting European policies

In recent years, several European nations — including France, Germany and the Netherlands — have introduced measures designed to facilitate restitution. These policy shifts have already led to returns to African countries such as Ghana, Benin and Nigeria, and the latest moves suggest that the pace of repatriation is accelerating.

The scale of the Dutch catalogue alone underscores how institutional attitudes are evolving. Yet questions remain about timelines, conservation capacity, and how receiving nations will integrate returned objects into public collections and narratives. For now, the Accra conference has set a pointed political tone: restitution is no longer a peripheral demand but a central element in a broader debate over historical accountability and cultural sovereignty.