The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has expressed his gratitude to Ghanaians for supporting the ‘Year of Return’ initiative.
“On behalf of Government, I extend sincere, heartfelt gratitude to the people of Ghana for helping to make the ‘Year of Return’ a great success,” the President said in a statement posted on his Twitter handle on Tuesday, January 7, 2020.
“The welcoming attitude and the warm Ghanaian hospitality proved to be the strongest attraction to hundreds of thousands of our kith and kin from the African diaspora, who thronged our shores to commemorate the ‘Year of Return’. The proverbial Ghanaian hospitality won once more.”
“The ‘Year of Return’ proved to be exciting, and afforded us the chance to re-establish, intensify and solidify the relations between those of us on the Continent and those in the Diaspora. They felt very welcome, enjoyed their stay with us, and, as a result, our country is, once again, the toast not only of Africa, but also of the world.”
He said it was by God’s grace that nothing no untoward incident occurred.
“I commend the Inspector General of Police, the Chief of Defence Staff of the Armed Forces, and the officers, men and women of our security services for their sense of professionalism and dedication to duty, which enabled them to preserve the peace and security of our country in the course of the celebration. By the grace of God, no untoward incident occurred.”
“As we begin the new initiative of ‘Beyond the Return’, which will entail that we engage in mutually beneficial trade, investment and cultural co-operation with the African Diaspora, I urge all Ghanaians to demonstrate this same level of excitement and commitment that characterized the ‘Year of Return’, and help make it also an enduring success.”
“Together, I am confident that we can imbibe in ourselves a deep consciousness and understanding of the goals and history of t. African peoples to ensure that the 21st century is, indeed, the African century, the century of black people the world over. May God bless us all, and our homeland Ghana, and make her great and strong,” the statement added.
It will be recalled that on 20th September, 2018, at the Washington Press Club, in Washington D.C., the President proclaimed 2019 as the “Year of Return”.
Its purpose was to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the time when the first 20 West African slaves were brought to the Commonwealth of Virginia, which subsequently became part of the United States of America, thereby initiating one of the most unfortunate and barbaric episodes of human history – the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.
At that event, President Akufo-Addo said, “We know of the extraordinary achievements and contributions they [Africans in the diaspora] made to the lives of the Americans, and it is important that this symbolic year—400 years later—we commemorate their existence and their sacrifices.”
