On November 28, Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, H.E. Shi Ting Wang attended the inauguration ceremony of the Joseph Boakye Danquah Memorial Centre at Kyebi in the Eastern Region of Ghana. More than 400 people attended the event including H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, President of the Republic of Ghana, Hon. Dr. Kwakye Darfour , the Eastern Regional Minister, Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, Minister of Communications, Hon. Samuel Atta Akyea, Minister of Works and Housing, Okyenhene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin, the Paramount Chief of the Abuakwa State, Mr. Zhou Wei, General Manager of Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. Ghana and school children from neighboring area.
Ambassador Wang said in his speech that the Chinese government and Chinese enterprises sincerely help Africa to achieve development by implementing not only key cooperation projects but also small-scale projects. In recent years, Huawei, a leading Chinese telecommunications company has actively fulfilled its corporate social responsibilities and has made important contributions to the ICT industry as well as economic and social development in Ghana and was widely recognized by all sectors of the Ghanaian society. Ambassador Wang stressed that in September this year, H.E. President Akufo-Addo paid a state visit to China and attended the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). China-Ghana relations has entered a new era. China is willing to work with Ghana to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and promote the important cooperation projects to benefit people of both countries.
H.E. President Akufo-Addo unveiled the J.B. Danquah Memorial Centre. He said in his speech that Dr. Joseph Boakye Danquah was one of the six founding fathers of Ghana (The Big Six), the founder of the Ghanaian democracy, the defender of the Ghanaian people's rights and liberties and the nomenclator of Ghana. The establishment of the Memorial Centre has important significance for the young people of Ghana to better understand the history of Ghana. H.E. President Akufo- Addo thanked Huawei for funding the renovation of the centre and the Chinese government for supporting the Ghanaian government and its people.
The audience deeply mourned Dr. J.B. Danquah with stage plays, poetry recitals and indigenous songs. All the people present were deeply touched by Dr. Danquah’s lofty personality and gave rounds of long-lasting applause.
The J.B. Danquah Memorial Centre is located at Kyebi of the Eastern Region of Ghana, hometown of H.E. President Akufo-Addo. It is funded by Huawei Technologies Limited Co. Ghana and equipped with computers, tables, chairs, servers to establish multimedia classrooms for the primary and secondary school students of the surrounding communities.
Dr. Joseph Boakye Danquah (1895-1965) was a politician, a Pan-Africanist, scholar, lawyer, historian and one of the founding fathers of Ghana (The Big Six). He played an important role in the independence of Ghana. Ghana was once called Gold Coast by British colonists. After several years of research on the history and traditions of the people of Gold Coast, Dr. Danquah found the name of the ancient kingdom called Ghana and named the independent country with it.