The Asante Professionals Club (APC) launched its 10-Year Anniversary Celebrations at a colourful event on 25th May 2025 at Erata Hotel, East Legon, Accra. The anniversary celebration is on the theme “Honouring Our Roots; Shaping Our Future.”
In attendance were members of the Club, comprising professionals from diverse backgrounds who hail from the Asante Kingdom. Other participants at the launch included founding members of the Club, state functionaries, Members of Parliament—some of whom are members of the Club—including Francis Asenso-Boakye, who proposed the formation of the Club, as well as media houses, the business community, and various dignitaries of Asante descent.
In his welcome address at the launch, the President of the Club, Dr. Isaac Augustus Antwi, highlighted the objectives of APC, which have the development of Asanteman and Ghana as a whole at its core. He underscored the many important roles individuals and groups can play to support the central government’s efforts at developing the country, emphasizing the unique position of a group such as APC in the development efforts of Asanteman. He quoted the old adage “3nam dodoɔ nsɛ nkwan,” implying that Ghana needs many more groups like APC to complement the central government’s development efforts in all parts of the country.
For this reason, he indicated that the Club has formed diaspora branches to connect and partner with Asante professionals who live abroad to utilize their knowledge and resources in the development pursuit. “Today, we can boast of branches in the USA and UK where well-meaning professionals of Asante descent are helping in various forms to enhance our development agenda, with plans underway to form more branches within and outside Ghana,” he said.
The President used the occasion to thank all members for their 10 years of genuine service to Asanteman and encouraged them to do even more as Asanteman and Ghana grapple with new development challenges. He also praised the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, who is the Life Patron of the Club, for his tremendous support and continuous guidance, which have engendered the numerous achievements of the Club in the areas of education, healthcare, business development, and social support.
The Founding President of the Club, who is also the Chairman of the Anniversary Planning Committee, Vincent Frimpong Manu Esq., underscored the need to celebrate the achievements of the Club over the last 10 years and recounted some of the commendable development interventions the APC has undertaken within the period. In particular, the Club renovated the Ashanti Library, made a number of donations to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, and treated thousands of community members and students from various ailments through its community and schools outreach programme.
The schools outreach, for instance, has also provided career guidance and counselling to over 20,000 students. Furthermore, the Club has facilitated internships and employment opportunities for thousands of Asante student graduates from our nation’s universities. He indicated that the Club makes cash donations annually to the Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Foundation to promote education and community development. Through its USA branch, the Club has also presented several school bags and other educational materials to the Foundation as its support for the enhancement of education in the region, and renovated the Manhyia Hospital.
The Club has also embarked on regular public education on Asante heritage through its annual Opemsuo Lectures.
It would be recalled that in 2019, the Club organized the Asanteman Development Summit, an event which brought together government officials, development practitioners, members of the diplomatic corps, and traditional authorities to discuss the preparation of a 10-Year Development Plan for Asanteman. The summit also resulted in the launch of a $100 million Asanteman Development Fund by Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II. An appeal was made for enhanced partnership to achieve all the activities in the plan.
To commemorate the 10th anniversary celebrations, he, on behalf of the Planning Committee, outlined various activities for the year-long celebrations, which will see the inauguration of a 40-seater ICT Laboratory as a 10-Year Anniversary Legacy Project.
Other activities include a Feasibility Report towards establishing a Financial Institution for Asanteman development, with particular focus on supporting the growth of small and medium businesses in the Kingdom. There will also be an Impact Documentary, as well as community and schools outreach programmes.
The Club would also host the 8th in the series of its flagship Opemsuo Lectures in Kumasi on the topic “Impact of the Akan Language on National Development.” The Opemsuo Lecture series, over the years, has provided a platform for various prominent speakers to share their thoughts on many developmental, cultural, and governance issues of importance to our society.
The anniversary celebrations would take members to Kumasi for an anniversary banquet to be hosted at the Manhyia Palace. Members would thereafter attend a thanksgiving service and also join Asantehene and the Chiefs and people of Asante at the last Akwasidae on the Asanteman calendar to climax the celebrations.
Since its formation in 2015, the membership of APC has grown to include various prominent Ghanaians who have all supported the objectives of the Club in diverse ways. The Club’s membership comprises Asantes of various professional backgrounds such as health professionals, teachers/educationists, lawyers, development practitioners, accountants/finance experts, bankers, politicians, entrepreneurs, etc.
By bringing together various professionals to execute one agenda, the Club has indirectly provided a platform for its members to benefit from networking opportunities, which has over the years enhanced the capacity of members in various ways.
As the Club celebrates its 10th anniversary, most of these success stories would be highlighted in addition to its future plans and aspirations. “We expect well-meaning Ghanaians who are passionate about the development of this country to support us in whichever way possible as we chart a new course in our Asanteman development agenda,” echoed the President of the Club in his closing remarks at the launch.
He extended an invitation to the general public to participate in the activities marking the anniversary, especially the Opemsuo Lecture and other public events to be organized.
