President Akufo-Addo has been awarded the Star Prize for the Black History Makers Awards. The award was received during the climax of the Global Africa Forum held at the Dentons Office, New York, USA in September 2023 in a special ceremony held as a sideline event of the 78th UN General Assembly. 

Presenting the award to the President, the African Union Ambassador to the United States, H.E Hilda Suka–Mafudze stated that, the gesture was in furtherance of the partners’ commitment to promoting the 2024 Black History Festival which aims to build strong ties to facilitate the promotion of exchange ideas, businesses, and culture amongst other innovations to the diaspora.  

The Executive Coordinator of the Festival and the President of Bureau for International Deveplopment, Exchanges and Commerce (BIDEC), Mr. Stephen Selasie Asuo, in anticipating the future with great enthusiasm, said he was thrilled to announce that the next edition of the Black History Festival and the Black History Makers Awards is scheduled to take place from the 21st to the 25th of February 2024 in the vibrant city of Columbus, Ohio, USA.

Mr. Asuo therefore encouraged governments from the Caribbean, America, and Africa, businesses, institutions, and individuals interested in the Global African Trade Market as well as our rich history and culture to mark their calendars and join in celebrating the legacy of the continent that continues to shape the world. 

Earlier this year, during the 2nd edition of the Black History Festival held in the USA in February, the President of Ghana was conferred with the coveted Star Prize of the Black History Makers Award in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the promotion of Diaspora Engagement, Investment, and Cultural Exchanges, notably through the Year of Return and Beyond the Return Initiative by the Bureau for International Development, Exchanges, and Commerce (BIDEC), under the auspices of the African Union Mission to the USA, in collaboration with esteemed partners in the USA.

The Global Africa Forum which was specially curated by the Africa Prosperity Network, Africa-America Institute with contributions from the Bureau for International Development, Exchanges and Commerce (BIDEC) to inspire outstanding contributions to the promotion of Diaspora Engagement, Investment, and Cultural Exchanges drew distinguished guests of remarkable caliber.

Also present at the ceremony were the President of the AfriExim Bank, the Secretary General of the AfCFTA, a Director of UNDP, the Minister of Finance of Ghana, the Minister of Education of Ghana, the Deputy Ministry of Energy of Ghana, the President of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), the Chair of the Pan African Parliament, the CEO of Ghana Investment Promotion Center, Special SDGs Advisor to the President, the Director of Diaspora Affairs, Office of the President of Ghana, as well as other eminent figures hailing from the Caribbean and the African continent. 

This remarkable convergence of leaders from the Government of Ghana, Africa Prosperity Network, Africa America Institute, and various other esteemed partners underscored the event’s significance.

Source: Lambert Donkor