Full Name
Kwame Nkrumah (born Francis Kwame Nkrumah)
Date of Birth
September 1909
Place of Birth
Nkroful, Gold Coast [now Ghana]
Date of Death
April 27, 1972 (cause of death: cancer)
Place of Death
Education
Lincoln University, (Bachelor’s degree in Sociology, magna cum laude) Lincoln University, (Degree in Sacred Theology) University of Pennsylvania, (Master’s degrees) London School of Economics, (PhD student, did not complete) University College London, (Continued studies, no degree specified)
Spouses Names
Fathia Nkrumah (married in 1961)
Children Names
Gamal Nkrumah, Samia Nkrumah, Sekou Nkrumah, Francis Nkrumah
Parents Names
(Mother’s name not specified), (Father’s name not specified)
Siblings’ Names
Not specified
Known Affiliates Names
J.B. Danquah, Marcus Garvey, C.L.R. James, Nnamdi Azikiwe
Affiliated Organizations’ Names
United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), Convention People’s Party (CPP), Organization of African Unity (OAU)
Early Life
Kwame Nkrumah was born in September 1909 in Nkroful, Gold Coast, now Ghana. His father was a goldsmith and his mother a retail trader. Baptized a Roman Catholic, Nkrumah spent nine years at a Roman Catholic elementary school in nearby Half Assini. After graduating from Achimota College in 1930, he began his career as a teacher at Roman Catholic junior schools in Elmina and Axim, and at a seminary[1].
Political Career
Nkrumah’s political career began to take shape when he pursued further studies in the United States, entering Lincoln University in Pennsylvania in 1935. After obtaining master’s degrees from Lincoln and the University of Pennsylvania, he immersed himself in political activism, becoming president of the African Students’ Organization of the United States and Canada. He organized the 5th Pan-African Congress in Manchester in 1945. Upon his return to the Gold Coast in late 1947, he became the general secretary of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC). After a split with the UGCC, he formed the Convention People’s Party (CPP) in June 1949, advocating for immediate self-government. Nkrumah initiated a campaign of “positive action” in January 1950, leading to nonviolent protests and strikes. He became the prime minister of the Gold Coast in 1952 and led the country to independence in 1957, becoming the first prime minister of Ghana. In 1960, he became the president of Ghana, a position he held until he was overthrown by a coup in 1966[1][2].
Achievements
Nkrumah’s achievements include leading Ghana to independence and establishing it as a beacon of hope for Africans and people of African descent worldwide. He developed a strong national education system, promoted a pan-Africanist culture, and played a leading role in African international relations during the decolonization period. His administration funded national industrial and energy projects, including the construction of the Akosombo Dam and the development of the Tema township[1][2][6][7].
Legacy
Nkrumah’s legacy is multifaceted. He is remembered as a visionary for Pan-Africanism and his efforts towards the unity of the African continent. His notion of Pan-Africanism guides aspirations for African unity, reflected in the formation of the Organization of African Unity and the African Union. Despite the authoritarian turn of his government in the 1960s and the economic challenges Ghana faced, his intellectual and political legacies, particularly his anti-imperialist stance and advocacy for a United States of Africa, continue to inspire[3][4][8]. His policies of Africanization and his role in the Pan-African movement have left an enduring impact on Ghana’s political culture and identity[1][2][4].
Citations: [1] https://www.britannica.com/biography/Kwame-Nkrumah [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwame_Nkrumah [3] https://www.academia.edu/11601065/Achievements_and_failures_of_Kwame_Nkrumah_Summarized [4] https://online.ucpress.edu/nrbp/article-abstract/1/3/347/111151/The-Kwame-Nkrumah-LegacyThe-Enduring-Pan-African?redirectedFrom=fulltext [5] https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/nkrumah-kwame [6] https://www.lse.ac.uk/alumni-friends-and-partners/LSE-alumni-shaping-the-world/World-leaders-and-politicians/Kwame-Nkrumah [7] https://www.modernghana.com/news/1295799/lets-reflect-on-dr-kwame-nkrumahs-achievements.html [8] https://tribunemag.co.uk/2021/04/we-face-forward [9] https://archives.upenn.edu/exhibits/penn-people/biography/kwame-nkrumah/ [10] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=171lGI9m5ek [11] https://www.jstor.org/stable/2784582 [12] https://mobile.ghanaweb.com/person/Kwame-Nkrumah-3265 [13] https://mobile.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/features/The-Achievements-and-Failures-of-President-Kwame-Nkrumah-166895 [14] https://jpanafrican.org/docs/vol4no10/4.10Intellectual.pdf [15] https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/shared/minitext/prof_kwamenkrumah.html [16] https://guilfordjournals.com/doi/pdf/10.1521/siso.70.3.426 [17] https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/nkrumah-kwame-1909-1972/ [18] https://theconversation.com/kwame-nkrumah-why-every-now-and-then-his-legacy-is-questioned-120790 [19] https://www.britannica.com/summary/Kwame-Nkrumah [20] https://www.sahistory.org.za/people/dr-kwame-nkrumah