The people of Ghana will Illuminate the century of Human Dignity.
Interestingly, this year [2023 ] Ghana marks the country’s 66th Independence Day. On 6th March, 1957 Prime Minister of Ghana, Dr Kwame Nkrumah declared the country free from British Colonial rule. Ghana set a record as the first country to gain independence from colonial rule after the long fight for freedom.
Ghana is my birthplace and the birthplace of many African countries’ freedom. Today, true to Kwame Nkrumah’s prophecy for the transmission of freedom, our precious fellow Africans of the continent are illuminating their countries, people there with the brilliant light of Kwame Nkrumah’s prophecy in his first words at midnight were: “At long last the battle has ended! And thus Ghana, your beloved country, is free forever.”
We shall endeavour to spread Kwame Nkrumah’s fragrance of hope and friendship into the continent, from this land of Ghana.”
The people of Africa had suffered terribly during the times of colonialism with its capitalism. It was a place that saw poverty and misery.
DOES THE OAU STAND WHERE IT USUALLY STANDS?
Is it the OAU’s intention to have the landmark of poverty and misery in Africa remain as a constant reminder of the foolishness of African leaders to embark on?
The Zimbabwe government is determined, and have launched the country’s peace mission from the land of greatest suffering, and have banned the export of raw lithium from its mines so it can cash in on value addition and stop losing billions of dollars in mineral proceeds to foreign companies.
The new regulation is designed to “ensure that the vision of Kwame Nkrumah to see every African country becoming an upper-middle income economy has been realised.
The government says it is losing $1.8 billion in mineral revenues due to smuggling and externalisation to South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. Gold is the most smuggled mineral. With continued high international demand, Zimbabwe is projected to become one of the world’s largest lithium exporters, with the government hoping to meet 20% of the world’s total demand for lithium when it fully exploits its known lithium resources. Zimbabwe has the largest lithium deposits in Africa.
I am overjoyed that the children and grand-children of Africans who stood at that time of independence are now striving energetically as leaders of peace in Zimbabwe and around the African continent.
The most important point is whether our faith is dedicated to actualizing peace, and prosperity. Is the prophecy of Kwame Nkrumah’s midnight speech infused with the African leaders’ unchanging wish for the happiness of all people?
That is why good policies earnestly for peace and prosperity and giving our all to our mandate is important.
In Buddhism, Kosen-Rufu means world peace and that is exactly what we have to work for.
The philosophy states that the change we seek in society begins with the purification of an individual’s heart. There are all kinds of revolutions: political, economic, scientific, artistic. Each has its own meaning and, often, its need.
But whatever one changes, the world will never improve as long as people or human beings themselves, who are the driving force and impetus behind all endeavours, remain selfish and lacking in compassion. In this sense, the human revolution is the most fundamental of all revolutions and, at the same time, the most necessary for humanity. (;Deisaku Ikeda.)
To discover that someone is willing to dedicate his life for the people of Zimbabwe despite their impoverished state, has given a real boost to the self-confidence of the Zimbabwen people.
They are encouraged by a new sense of being trusted and being needed by society. That confidence has sustained the hard efforts they invest to make their economy work.
The whole experience with Zimbabwe leaders has demonstrated that they are by nature good, wise, and honest. What better evidence do we need?
Approach and record of accomplishments can serve as a model for Africa’s economic assistance in the future. Its basic premise is not to provide aid to the poor Africans from above, but to work with the people in each case to examine the causes of their poverty and together find ways to overcome them.
What are the characteristics of Africa’s civilization?
The early African civilizations are an open secret that Africa was the cradle of humankind and civilization.
Before civilization, men lived in a state of nature with no rules or development witnessed today. Before development and civilization, the African continent had a different environment with different weather patterns. Some areas were dry and surrounded by deserts, while other areas were rainy, fertile and productive.
Some Africans living in dry areas migrated in search of productive areas where they established new forms of government and advanced societies. Those who remained in the deserts and forests had to look for new ways to survive. They, therefore, started new means of production and trade. In this way, the first African civilization emerged. This lesson will focus on the three early or old African civilizations, which were the following:
- Egypt
- The Kingdom of Kush
- The Kingdom of Axum
Egypt was the first African country to experience civilization. Egypt is found in the northeastern parts of Africa along the great river Nile. The Nile River provided the Egyptians with much-needed water for farming. In the tenth millennia BC, the early Egyptians lived a nomadic life where they hunted and gathered food.
This culture was later replaced by agricultural farming, where grains were the main food source. In 6000 BC, a Neolithic society was established. Egyptians shifted from being hunters and gatherers, focused more on agriculture and permanent settlements, and established new forms of leadership, complex societies, and other professional labourers. With time Egyptians continued to develop more complicated cultures, which eventually led to the development and innovation of writing in 3200 BC.
In one word, the essence of Africa’s civilization is faith and unity in diversity.
When you look at Africa today, Africa is seriously engaged in varieties of local and international activities finding better ways to organise and rebuild its civilization with faith in the unity of its diversity.
You are right, Africa today has become more self conscious not with a fairy tale version of going to heaven to enjoy life after death but with the imagination to make a great contribution to highly advance and enrich the daily life of its people.
Thank you TSASI.
