Nkrumahfest 2025: Ghana prepares to celebrate life and legacy of Nkrumah

Ghanaians are being called to Nkroful this week to honour the memory and birthday of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first President and the enduring torchbearer of Pan-Africanism.

Dr. Collins Rawlings Nunyonameh, Executive Director of the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, has announced the launch of Nkrumahfest 2025 — A Journey to Nkroful, a historic festival designed to celebrate the life and legacy of the man who led Ghana to independence.

The week-long event will run from 15th to 21st September 2025 in Nkroful, the Western Region town where Nkrumah was born.

“This is more than a festival,” Dr. Nunyonameh said in his invitation. “It is a national journey of reflection, pride, and unity, reminding us of the values Nkrumah stood for: freedom, self-reliance, and African solidarity.”

Nkrumah, born on 21st September 1909, became the face of Ghana’s independence struggle. As the founding leader of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), he spearheaded the movement that led to Ghana becoming the first sub-Saharan African nation to break free from colonial rule in 1957.

His vision extended beyond national borders, as he championed Pan-African unity, inspiring liberation movements across the continent.

Under his leadership, Ghana witnessed ambitious development projects, including the construction of the Akosombo Dam, the establishment of state enterprises, and the founding of educational and cultural institutions.

Though overthrown in a 1966 coup, his influence remains deeply embedded in Ghana’s identity and Africa’s collective memory.

The Nkrumahfest 2025 program is expected to feature cultural performances, academic lectures, exhibitions, and community engagements, all paying tribute to Nkrumah’s ideals.

Organizers say the pilgrimage to Nkroful will serve as both a commemoration of his birthday and a reaffirmation of his call for Africans to take pride in their destiny.

For many, the festival comes at a time when conversations about African unity, economic independence, and youth empowerment are increasingly urgent.

The event seeks to connect the past with the present, and to inspire a new generation to carry forward his unfinished mission.

Nkrumah’s birthday, 21st September, has long been recognized as Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Day, a statutory holiday in Ghana.

This year’s festival promises to deepen that national reflection with a celebration at his birthplace.

As Dr. Nunyonameh puts it, “To journey to Nkroful is to journey to the roots of Ghana’s independence story, and to renew our commitment to building the Africa Nkrumah dreamed of.”