By Esther Atani, The Sight News
Abuja: In a bid to bridge the cultural gap between Africans in the diaspora and those in their home country, the Knowledge Mill International Institute is set to give identity to Africans in Diaspora through an initiative called the African Heritage Accord(AHA).
This was disclosed by the Global Director, Knowledge Mill International Institute, Mr Anthony Nwoke in a press conference on Friday in Abuja.
Nwoke introduced the African Heritage Accords (AHA) project, an initiative aimed at giving a cultural and historical identity to Africans in the Diaspora and also a vehicle for social reforms.
The conference was held to introduce the African Heritage Accord Inaugural Colloquium and Cultural Festival scheduled to hold June 2020 in Austin, Texas which would centre on the identification of all people of African descent to give them a sense of belonging and pride in their cultural heritage.
Also, Nwoke stated that the AHA’s main purpose was in line with the United Nations goals of world peace and international friendliness.
He called for the reconciliation of African people in Africa and those in diaspora, as vestiges of slavery still exist in forms of identity crises prevalent in the African diaspora.
According to him, “Even though the world seems to have moved on, there are latent discontentment and psychological inadequacies that are as a direct result of the impact of slavery on a people.
“The continued consequences of slavery cannot be written off. It is present in the way Africa is perceived by the rest of the world and so the people of Africa must go further to create networks, reconnect with their roots and change the African story and perception”, he said.
Also speaking, the Chairman of AHA, General Akali expressed concern that although Africans and Caribbean constitute about a trillion dollars in untapped assets as human capital, the black world wasn’t pulling its weight in the global economic sphere.
He intimated that it was because of the ethnic and cultural chasm between Africans in their home countries and in the diaspora.
