After the independence of Ghana in 1957, Dr Kwame Nkrumah made contacts with the already independent African countries and invited them for a congress in April 1958. It was attended by all the independent African states by then. These were Liberia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Tunisia, Morocco, Sudan, Libya and Egypt. The April 1958 congress was followed by an "All African Peoples' Congress" in December 1958. This was attended by all willing African countries, Independent or not. Both congresses took place in ACCRA.

Significance

The significance of the April Accra Pan African Congress was as follows:

For the first time, the Pan African congress was held on African soil in Accra, the capital of independent Ghana. The African nationalists had therefore obtained a propaganda base which they had for many years longed for. Accra became a centre from which revolutionary ideas spread to the rest of Africa.

The Pan African movement became more practical and militant. Participants demanded for a speedy end to colonialism all over the continent.

From then on, Pan Africanism became a movement basically for the Africans within the African continent. Its aims became the bringing together of all Africans within Africa rather than championing the interests of blacks in the Diaspora.

The idea of non-alignment was discussed and adopted by a number of participants. On returning to their home countries, the participants called for non-alignment, at least in theory.

It bridged the gap between the Arab North and Negro South. Of the eight participants, five were from the North.

It re-awakened the Pan African movement, which had been in limbo ever since the 1945 Manchester conference.

This congress gave a chance to African leaders to meet each other, know each other and share their visions. At Accra, the common problems affecting the continent were pointed out. After this congress the participants started visiting each other's countries and sharing ideas, e.g. Nkrumah visited a number of African states thereafter.

During the April 1958 conference, the eight independent African states agreed to share and exchange cultural, scientific, technological and educational information.

They also agreed to improve communication lines within Africa for the easy movement of nationalists and Pan African ideas.

Participants also addressed themselves to the question of the future relationship between Africa and the rest of the world. They commonly adopted the non-alignment ideology in relation to world superpower politics.

During the conference, Nkrumah made it clear that the independence of Ghana alone was meaningless when the rest of Africa was still under colonial Yoke. He therefore pledged to assist those countries still under colonial rule and called upon other independent countries to do the same.

It aroused nationalistic feelings through out West Africa. The French colonies which had believed in the goodness of the colonial masters started seeing light. From the speeches made during the Accra conference, they came to learn that colonialism was an evil. The French assimilation policy had earlier on made them think that colonialism was for the good of blacks.

It led to the formation of several political parties and liberation movements throughout Africa, e.g. Patrice Lumumba formed the MNC in 1958. Nationalists in Portuguese colonies also formed Liberation movements.

The idea of African unity was given serious attention. Africans were argued to stop thinking only in terms of their individual states and start thinking about the entire Africa continent. This gave birth to the organization of African Unity.

Participants joined their voice in condemning the extreme colonial oppression and exploitation in South Africa and Portuguese colonies.

JULIUS NYERERE, FORMER Tanzanian president organised the sixth Pan African Congress in 1974 in Dar es salaam. He replaced Kwame Nkrumah in carrying the torch of Pan Africanism.

It led to the inauguration of the "Africa Freedom Day". This is celebrated annually on 15th April. The first anniversary of the April 1958 Accra conference was funded by the American Committee on Africa.

Participants adopted the democratic principle of one-man one vote

It laid foundation for many other congresses e.g. the Tunisia, Lagos, Monrovia, Addis Ababa and Casablanca conferences. In all these, the questions of African unity and culture were seriously addressed. Members agreed to respect each other's boundaries, solve inter state disputes peacefully and help refugees.