On July 4, 2023, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will dedicate the renovated Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, which cost about $3.5 million.
In Ghana, a significant historical monument is the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park. It was a memorial to Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the nation’s first president. The remains of the first President and his wife, Fathia Nkrumah, are also interred there.
The Park is situated on the site of the former Polo Grounds of the British colonial government in Accra, where Dr. Kwame Nkrumah proclaimed Ghana’s independence.
After many years of independence, the former head of state, His Excellency the late Jerry John Rawlings, erected the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park in 1990 in memory of Ghana’s first president and as a contribution to safeguarding the country’s history. In 1992, the Park was made accessible to everyone.
Since it was founded in 1992, approximately 98,000 visitors annually from all over the world have come to pay respects to Ghana’s first president and learn about his life and legacies. One of Ghana’s top ten tourist destinations is The Park.
The Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park has been around for 25 years, but no significant renovations have been made to the building. The fact is that there was a time when the fountains, which are important attractions, weren’t working properly or consistently, which affected tourism.
In addition, the museum’s roof leaked every time it rained, making it challenging to move visitors.
The VIP lounge, where the majority of State VIP visitors signed the visitors’ books after their tour, did not present a different set of circumstances. In addition, the restrooms’ main hallway and some of their interiors were in a terrible condition.
When His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo assumed office as President of the Republic of Ghana in 2017, he immediately declared that tourism was a key component of social advancement and had the potential to significantly boost the nation’s economy.
Through the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo was able to secure a 40 million US dollar loan facility from the World Bank in 2018. The loan will be used to develop tourism sites and destinations, strengthen and enable the current tourism environment, address the constraints that are most likely to have a transformative impact on the industry, and pay for business development services and training.
Dr. Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, Minister of Tourism, Arts, and Culture, officially kicked off the restoration and development of the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park and Mausoleum on July 19, 2022, by turning the first sod.
His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, whose ruling party, the New Patriotic Party, recognizes and values the significance of the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park and its contribution to the history of Ghana, will commission the redevelopment on Tuesday, July 4, 2023.
Therefore, the government is making every effort to elevate the monument to a status befitting of Ghana’s first president while also raising the necessary funds for the nation.
