The National Heroes Project has been launched in Accra to identify, honour and immortalise individuals whose sacrifices and contributions laid the foundations for Ghana’s political, economic and social development.
The project is expected to establish a National Heroes Day and document the lives, achievements and values of past national figures to inspire the younger generation as the country prepares for its centenary anniversary in 2057.
The initiative, launched yesterday by the Centre for National Interest and Research (CNIR), forms part of the Centenary Agenda Initiative, which focuses on Ghana’s development over the next 30 years, from 2027 to 2057.
Addressing the media at the launch, the Director of the CNIR, Dr Dzabaku Kudiabor Ocansey, said Ghana had not done enough to recognise individuals whose exceptional contributions had helped shape the country.
He said the project would help address the situation by documenting and preserving the sacrifices, innovations and values of past leaders, entrepreneurs, farmers, nationalists and other professionals.
Dr Ocansey said Ghana’s history had been shaped by people who sacrificed their resources, time and lives to protect the country’s interests, adding that their experiences offered valuable lessons for addressing contemporary national challenges.
He said Ghana did not need to “reinvent the wheel” in its quest for development, since its forebears had established principles and structures that could provide guidance for the future.
Dr Ocansey explained that the project would focus on individuals whose contributions went beyond partisan politics, stressing that many historical figures had served the country without holding political office or belonging to political parties.
He cited Tetteh Quarshie, J.E. Casely Hayford, Paa Grant and Rebecca Naa Dedei Aryeetey as some of the historical figures whose contributions demonstrated Ghanaians’ capacity to build and support their own economy.
Dr Ocansey said the project would include symposia and memorial lectures, followed by a National Heroes Posthumous Award Ceremony and the establishment of a Hall of Fame.
He said the National Heroes Symposium and Memorial Lectures would be held between October and December 2026, while planning for the National Heroes Posthumous Award Ceremony would take place from January to March 2027.
The full development of the Posthumous Awards and Hall of Fame would subsequently run from 2027 to 2032.
Dr Ocansey also disclosed that the project would produce The Fathers of the Motherland: The National Heroes Diary, documenting the lives and contributions of identified personalities.
He said a children’s version of the diary and a digital museum were also planned.
Dr Ocansey called on the media, institutions, partners and the public to support the initiative, stressing that it sought not only to preserve the legacies of historical figures but also to promote the values they represented.
He urged Ghanaians, particularly the youth, to take a keen interest in the country’s history.
BY STEPHANIE BIRIKORANG
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