Ghana will from February 9 to 14 participate in this year’s Reconnecting Afro Root Carnival at Salvador, Bahia in Brazil.
To be held on the theme ‘Reconnecting with our Roots,’ the carnival is aimed at bringing together blacks of African descent for cultural exchanges and development of partnerships within the business community.
Ghana’s participation in the global event would be led by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) in partnership with the Ghana Embassy in Brazil.
The delegation would include musicians, cultural artists, members of the business community and the diaspora.
Launching Ghana’s participation in Accra yesterday, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mark Okraku Mantey, said the carnival presented opportunity for all participants to learn and teach the history regarding slavery and the consequential resistance which led to its abolition.
He noted that the reverse effect of slavery was the trafficking of Africans to different parts of the world, leading to loss of family ties.
He said the carnival would help in reconnecting blacks from all part of the world and explore trade and business opportunities
Mr Mantey reiterated the government’s commitment to creating the linkage between Ghana and blacks in other parts of the world to further investment opportunities.
Abena Busia, Ghana’s Ambassador to Brazil, said Ghana and the black population of Brazil shared similarities in culture, heritage, music and other way of life.
The invitation to Ghana to participate in the carnival, she said also paved the way for black Brazilians to visit Ghana on special occasions for cultural exchanges.
She urged Ghanaian businesses to take advantage of the festival to identify strategic investors to help grow and expand their businesses.
In addition to the cultural exchanges, Madam Busia said black Brazilian who wish to trace their African origin would be assisted through DNA testing.
The Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GTA, Ben Anane-Nsiah, said Ghana was working toward using such events to build bridges with the African family scattered across the globe, adding that the GTA was focused on making the collaboration beneficial for both Ghana and Brazil.
Representative of UNESCO to Ghana, Edmond Moukala, said the carnival was a laudable initiative to strengthen the ties between Africa and Africans in other lands, especially Brazil to promote cultural heritage and advance the rights of people of African descent.
BY CLAUDE NYARKO ADAMS
