The statement from the President's official residence also said that Macron plans to bring together African and European partners in Paris some time in the first few months of 2019 to establish a framework for returning artworks.

Macron had requested the report from French art historian Savoy and Senegalese economist Sarr in March. In it, the authors recommend that France returns essentially all artworks looted during the colonial period to their African countries of origin.

There are an estimated 70,000 artefacts from sub-Saharan Africa in the collections of the Musee du quai Branly in Paris, and more than 17,000 in around 100 other museums.

Western museums have traditionally resisted appeals to return objects to their countries of origin, which they often argue lack the necessary resources to care for the works.