as Ghana Marks Founder’s Day
By Prince Ahenkorah
Founders’ day celebration has reignited talks over Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah’s enduring legacy and vision for Ghana and Africa.
President John Dramani Mahama has urged Ghanaians to draw inspiration from the vision and legacy of Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, as the country marks Founder’s Day.
In a message shared on Monday, September 21, 2026, President Mahama said the occasion provides an opportunity for Ghanaians at home and abroad to reflect on Dr Nkrumah’s contribution to Ghana’s independence struggle, nation-building and the broader Pan-African cause.
He said Dr Nkrumah’s commitment to liberty, Pan-African unity and self-reliance helped position Ghana as a symbol of hope and possibility on the global stage.
President Mahama added that Nkrumah’s belief in the capacity of Africans to determine and manage their own affairs remains relevant to Ghana’s national identity and aspirations.
“Today is our Founder’s Day, another opportunity for us to pause as a people and honour the immortal legacy of our nation’s founder, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah,” he said.
He stressed that the commemoration should go beyond celebrating Nkrumah’s achievements and serve as a reminder of the responsibilities that remain in Ghana’s nation-building journey.
According to the President, although Ghana attained political independence under Dr Nkrumah’s leadership, the task of building a prosperous, equitable and resilient society remains unfinished.
“As we celebrate his unparalleled legacy today, I remind every Ghanaian at home and in the diaspora that the work of nation-building is not complete,” he said.
President Mahama further urged Ghanaians to draw strength from Nkrumah’s ideals and apply them to contemporary efforts to transform the country.
He called for unity, selfless patriotism, economic freedom and social justice, linking the ideals of political independence championed by Nkrumah to Ghana’s present development challenges.
“Just as Nkrumah fought for our political independence, we have a collective duty today to build a prosperous, equitable, and resilient Ghana,” he said.
Meanwhile, Kenyan lawyer and Pan-Africanist Professor Patrick Loch Otieno Lumumba has called on African heads of state and finance ministers to study Dr Nkrumah’s writings to better understand the continent’s economic challenges.
Speaking at Nkroful on Saturday, September 19, during activities marking Nkrumah’s 117th birthday, Prof Lumumba said Nkrumah’s writings contained ideas that remained relevant to Africa’s pursuit of economic independence.
He cited Nkrumah’s advocacy for African unity, industrialisation, economic self-reliance and stronger continental cooperation as areas that could inform Africa’s response to current development challenges.
Prof Lumumba argued that Nkrumah recognised the connection between political unity and economic independence decades ago and urged African leaders to revisit his ideas as they confront present economic difficulties.
National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, has also called for Dr Nkrumah to receive sole recognition as the founder of Ghana.
Speaking at the launch of NkrumahFest at Nkroful on Saturday, Asiedu Nketiah argued that Dr Nkrumah played a decisive role in bringing together the territories that eventually formed modern Ghana.
He identified the Gold Coast, Ashanti Kingdom, Northern Territories and Trans-Volta Togoland as separate entities before the formation of modern Ghana.
“I thought that Nkrumah deserves to hold that single title as the founder of Ghana. Before Nkrumah came to the scene, there was nothing like Ghana,” he said.
Asiedu Nketiah also rejected comparisons between Dr Nkrumah and other politicians and nationalists who contributed to the independence struggle.
“No other politician and no other nationalist can compare themselves to the one and only Osagyefo Dr Nkrumah,” he stated.
NkrumahFest, instituted by Ellembelle Member of Parliament Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, was intended to promote the study of Dr Nkrumah’s works and preserve his legacy.
The 2026 celebration was held under the theme, “Nkrumah @ 117: Celebrating His Enduring Legacy – Africa Must Unite or Perish.”