The Africa Institute (Sharjah, UAE) cordially invites you to the second edition of its annual country-focused program themed, Global Ghana: In Search of Africa’s Black Star between October 27-29, 2022 at the Institute of African Studies (IAS), University of Ghana, Legon, Accra (Location Map).
In collaboration with leading scholars Akosua Adomako Ampofo, Jean Allman, Carina Ray, and Joseph Oduro-Frimpong, this interdisciplinary conference will explore the multiplicity of meanings that have been and continue to be invested in Ghana as a beacon of African emancipation, African unity, and continental innovation.
The program aims to eschew racially essentialist interpretations of the Black Star in favor of diverse perspectives informed by Ghana’s complex history—from Ghana’s role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade in the 17th and 18th centuries to its place as one of the most significant sites for Afro-Arab solidarity in the 20th century. Deep historical perspectives will inform the program’s consideration of how younger generations in Ghana today are reimagining what and who constitutes the Black Star nation and its possible futures through a range of different media, including visual and performing arts.
Following the successful rendition in Sharjah themed, Global Ghana: Sites of Departure/Sites of Return held between March 08-10, 2022, we are excited to continue another segment of the conference through a dynamic mix of programming that includes four panels, two film screenings, theatrical performance and a book launch.