Youth urged to do more for Africa

Accra, June 15, GNA - Mrs. Pavelyn Tendai Musaka, Zimbabwean Ambassador in Ghana on Friday challenged the youth to research more into the positive cultural heritage of the African people in order to foster unity among their citizens.

She said Africa had a diverse and rich heritage, which should be guarded and maintained for future generations. Mrs Musaka was speaking at an African Union (AU) Exposition, which is prelude to the upcoming AU Conference schedule for next month, July 1, 2007 in Accra.

The exhibition being organised by the Du Bois Centre for Pan-African Culture would showcase cultural performances, films and national cuisines from six countries- Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Burkina Faso, Libya, Liberia and South Africa to the Ghanaian public to learn more about the culture and people of these countries. Mrs Musaka also used the occasion to deny reports that Zimbabwean government led by President Robert Mogabe was harassing members of the main opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in the country.

She said the issue of the country's land reform programme should have been carried out immediately after the country had attained its independence to forestall some of the backlash that nation was going through.

She said Zimbabwe was a multi racial country and that the government was not there to target any group of people because of their political affiliations.

Professor Anne V. Adams, Director of the Du Bois Centre said the objective of the exhibition was to take advantage of the AU Conference in Ghana and to expose cultural artefacts and cuisines of these selected countries to Ghanaians and other people who would be visiting the country.

She said the AU Conference in Ghana was an historic moment for the Centre and the country since one of the founding fathers of the OAU was Ghana's first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah.

She expressed the hope that while African leaders deliberate on economic, political and agricultural issues during the AU conference they would also discuss the issue of cultural ties among the peoples on the continent.