The December summit on the theme: “Resetting Ghana: The Diaspora as the 17th Region,” will feature plenaries on investment, innovation, and culture, as well as a special reparations conference.
It will climax with the Diaspora Awards Gala, celebrating the extraordinary contributions of Ghanaians and people of African descent worldwide.
The 2025 Diaspora Summit is expected to attract leaders from government, business, civil society, and the global African community to Accra in December.
Mr. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Minister of Foreign Affairs, at the media launch in Accra on Wednesday, stressed that the summit, would go beyond homecoming and celebrations to serve as a platform for advancing justice, reparations, and unity among Africans worldwide.
“We send a very clear message today that those who tried to divide us did not succeed. We remain one people that cannot be separated by oceans or by history,” he said.
The Minister announced that all participants travelling to Ghana for the summit would enjoy visa-free entry, describing the gesture as symbolic of Ghana’s commitment to welcoming its “17th Region.”
“When your brothers and sisters are coming home, you don’t place impediments before them. Once you are reuniting with us at the 2025 Diaspora Summit, no visas, no fees,” he added.
Mr. Ablakwa announced that five distinguished Africans would be honoured as envoys of the summit, each receiving a diplomatic passport in recognition of their efforts in advancing African unity and cultural identity.
The honourees are: celebrated YouTuber Wode Maya; UK-based entrepreneur and cultural promoter Lady Dentaa Amoateng; iconic musician Rocky Dawuni; creative entrepreneur Anita Erskine; and renowned visual artist Ibrahim Mahama.
On reparations, he said Ghana would continue to champion the African Union’s campaign, with President John Dramani Mahama’s mandate as AU Champion for Reparations recently extended for another decade.
“This is not about monetary gain. It is about restoring dignity, justice, and closure,” the Minister emphasised.
Nana Oye Bampoe Addo, Deputy Chief of Staff, who represented President Mahama, assured the diaspora community that their investments and contributions would be secured and welcomed.
“The diaspora is not apart from Ghana; it is part of Ghana. Your stories, your talents, your innovations, your sacrifices enrich our fabric. This summit is a celebration of the invaluable place you occupy in our development agenda,” she said.
She linked the summit to Africa’s forthcoming “Decade of Reparations” (2026–2036), stressing the need for Africans everywhere to pool their resources and energies.
“We can only build our own when we connect our collective energies. Reparations are also about building Africa and its descendants,” she said.
Mr. Kofi Okyere Darko (KOD), Director of the Diaspora Affairs Office at the Presidency, described the summit as a reset in Ghana’s diaspora policy, shifting the perception of the diaspora from remittance senders to full partners in transformation.
“Ghana’s greatest wealth is not beneath the ground but within its people, both at home and abroad. This summit is about repositioning the diaspora as a monumental resource for growth and development,” he stated.
Mr. Darko noted that remittances reached US$6.4 billion in 2024 and were projected to surpass US$6.8 billion in 2025, contributing about six percent to Ghana’s GDP.
He, however, emphasised that the diaspora’s true value lay beyond finance, in innovation, entrepreneurship, and advocacy that connected Ghana to the world stage.
Outlining his office’s 2025 mandate to “build bridges and break barriers,” he said efforts were underway to institutionalise diaspora engagement through the Diaspora Engagement Policy and partnerships with over 27 ministries and agencies.
Initiatives include a 24-hour hotline, residence permit support for returnees, and endorsements for over 100 diaspora-led organisations.
GNA
