Ghanaians enjoy 50th celebration
Posted: 07 Mar 2007 @ 00:00
THE REPUBLIC of Ghana, the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to gain its independence from a colonial power, celebrated its 50th anniversary on Tuesday.
Ghanaians of all ages participated in several days of celebrations, which began on Independence Day with concerts, speeches, festivals, and talks, and ended with a fireworks display.
Many of the buildings in the country’s capital, Accra, had been treated to a lick of paint, and the national flag, the Black Star tricolour, adorned shop-fronts, houses, and car roofs. In the same way, the figure of Ghana’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah, loomed large on hoardings to be found around the towns and cities.
Mr Nkrumah is regarded as the father of modern Ghana. Although he was deposed in a coup d’état in the mid-1960s, he is still regarded as an inspiring figure.
In the run-up to Independence Day, Ghana experienced an influx of visitors from all over the world, many of them from the Ghanaian diaspora, wanting to mark the occasion.
Others sent messages, among them the Bishop of Portsmouth, Dr Kenneth Stevenson, whose diocese is linked with the West African state.
Richard Reddie travelled to Ghana for a BBC programme on the Transatlantic slave trade. The visit will be featured on Sunday Worship on BBC Radio 4 on 11 March at 8.10 a.m.