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Ghana celebrates 50th year of independence
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by Kaitlin | March 6, 2007 at 09:24 am
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Today is Ghana's 50th year of independence from British colonial rule. To get an idea of where the country fits on the world stage, you need not look far: Former UN Secretary General (and Nobel Peace Prize winner) Kofi Annan is Ghanaian--and probably the world's most famous diplomat.
As this "wave" of independence celebrations begins, it will be interesting to see the various ways in which the post-colonial world has changed...or hasn't. I'm sure many countries will, like Ghana, struggle with how far they've come and how far they feel they have yet to go.
Also check out NowPublic member angryindian's post of an opinion piece by Gamal Nkrumah, the son of Ghana's first President, Kwame Nkrumah, and beninmw's post about how women can (and will) make a big difference in Ghana's ecomony.
When Ghana begins celebrations this week for its 50th year of independence – the first of a wave of African countries to throw off colonial rule in the 1950s and '60s – there will be brave speeches, feasts, free concerts, and plenty of the national colors of red, yellow, and green.There will also be mutters of disappointment that one of Africa's most promising countries, which gained independence from Britain on March 6, 1957, hasn't achieved more. For many Africans, the lack of post-colonial progress is brought home by the fact that Ghana has done far better than most other African nations, but far worse than Asian countries that achieved independence at around the same time, such as India, Indonesia, and Malaysia.
If Ghanaians are the first to feel this pungent mixture of pride and resignation, it will not be alone. Over the next five years, dozens of other African nations will celebrate 50 years of independence – and decry the lost opportunities to make more of their freedom.
Ghana "lit the torch of African independence," says Vladimir Antwi-Danso, a lecturer in international affairs at Accra University in Ghana's capital. Mr. Antwi-Danso points to Ghana's relative stability in a war-torn West Africa as a major reason for the success. "What I mean by stability is that we have seen several military cycles, but we have not degenerated into carnage, civil war, and the kind of thing that some of the countries around us have, so we have something to be proud of."
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at 09:43 on March 6th, 2007
Ghana turning 50 is big news. When it was the first African nation to win independence, through the efforts of Kwame Nkruma, the world sat up and took notice. The Brits had put the guy in jail, but here he was on the outside creating the beginnings of a democracy for the first time in the Sub-Saharan region.
Ghana has gone through lots of turmoil over the last few years, but has recently settled down and its economy is on the rebound.
Please go and visit, do some volunteer work.
Ghana is listed as one of the most happy countries in the world, which is remarkable given that most people there make less than $2/day.
Go find out why.
at 16:49 on March 7th, 2007
I thought Liberia was the first African country to win independence. I'm pretty sure that Sudan was before Ghana, too?
at 16:48 on March 7th, 2007
Football fans got a big taste of Ghanaian patriotism during the World Cup last year. It was Ghana's first World Cup appearance, and they were the only African team to make it to the knockout stage.
While few people would give credit to football for uniting a country, I'll bet no one in Ghana underestimates the 1963 Nations Cup for its effect on the people. It wasn't long after their independence, Nkruma was just given the Lenin Peace Prize, and
Joseph Agyeman-Gyau and Ghana stunned the rest of Africa by beating the giant Sudan to win the tournament. The common people felt pride in their new country and began to believe they could do anything, like Nkruma said.
Their definitive win against the Czechs in the 2006 World Cup marked the first time they beat a European team since 1964. They were a team that no one even considered discussing, and they beat the #2 ranked team in the world. During the World Cup, they showed a lot of broadcasts from Ghana, and the people were just ecstatic. It was wonderful to watch, and I understand that the unbridled patriotism is common at all Ghana football matches.