Apia, Samoa - The Commonwealth's 56 members agreed on Saturday the "time has come" for talks about the legacy of the "abhorrent" atrocities of the enslavement era, in a landmark summit declaration that raised the prospect of future reparations.

Gathering in Samoa, leaders from Britain and dozens of former colonies held talks over the ongoing legacies of historic crimes against humanity.

In a joint statement, Commonwealth leaders noted calls for "reparatory justice" for the "abhorrent" transatlantic slave trade and the "enduring effects" of dispossessing Indigenous people, indentureship, and colonialism.

"The time has come for a meaningful, truthful and respectful conversation towards forging a common future based on equity," a joint Samoa Communique said.

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African, Caribbean, and Pacific nations want Britain – and other colonial powers – to atone for slavery and other crimes of colonization, and to start talks about compensation.

Many of the nations remain poorer than their former colonizers and still feel the impacts of the brutal kidnapping and trafficking of an estimated 10-15 million people from Africa over four centuries in order to enrich European colonizer countries.

Britain has baulked at the idea of paying financial reparations.

"I should be really clear here, in the two days we've been here, none of the discussions have been about money," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said after the meeting. "Our position is very, very clear in relation to that."

The conclusion of the meeting, which took place during the UK's Black History Month, was delayed for hours as leaders and officials tried to hammer out a compromise.

During the summit, Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis told AFP it was time for "a real dialogue about how we address these historical wrongs."

"The horrors of slavery left a deep, generational wound in our communities, and the fight for justice and reparatory justice is far from over," he said.

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One expert said the summit could come to be seen as historic.

"The commitment to conversations on reparatory justice wedges open the door for dialogue," said Kingsley Abbott, of the University of London's Institute of Commonwealth Studies.

"The Commonwealth," he said, "should see this as an opportunity to lead on a potentially historic process, and to do so with vision and courage."

Britain has continually refused to make amends for the devastation it has wrought on the world.

King Charles III, whose family benefited from slavery, had faced calls to apologize personally.

The British royal, who was attending his first summit as monarch and as head of the Commonwealth, did not heed calls for an apology on Friday, instead asking delegates to "reject the language of division."

"I understand, from listening to people across the Commonwealth, how the most painful aspects of our past continue to resonate," he said.

"None of us can change the past. But we can commit, with all our hearts, to learning its lessons and to finding creative ways to right inequalities that endure."

Charles left to return to London before the final summit communique had been agreed.

During the meeting, Commonwealth leaders also discussed the "existential" issue of climate change.

They agreed to an Ocean Declaration, which recognizes current national maritime boundaries even if sea levels continue to rise.

They also agreed to protect at least 30% of the ocean and to restore at least 30% of degraded marine ecosystems by 2030.

"What the ocean declaration seems to do and to say is that once your marine boundaries are fixed, they are fixed in perpetuity," outgoing Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Patricia Scotland told AFP.

Commonwealth leaders also agreed to name Ghana's Foreign Minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey as the new secretary-general.

A former lawmaker, she has served as foreign minister for the past seven years, notably steering Ghana's two-year tenure on the UN Security Council, ending in December 2023.

She has backed the drafting of a Commonwealth free trade agreement and has previously said she stands for reparations.

"Truly humbled by the overwhelming support of the Commonwealth Heads of Government in selecting me as the incoming Secretary-General of the Commonwealth," she posted on social media. "The work indeed lies ahead!"