Question

Answer the following question.
In the context of the rapid growth of African nationalism and decolonization in Africa, discuss :
The initial achievements of Kwame Nkrumah in the field of internal and external affairs of Ghana. 

Answer 1

Kwame Nkrumah was the first Prime Minister of Ghana and ruled from 1957 till his removal by the army in 1966.

1. Nkrumah was the first person to organize the workers and peasants in a mass movement for independence.
2. He had a socialist outlook and wanted better living conditions for his people and industrialization.
3. Under his struggle and efforts, Ghana became a Commonwealth country.
4. He tried to establish a welfare state.
5. Cocoa was Ghana’s mainly exported product and its production doubled under his reign. Forestry, fishing, and cattle-breeding expanded. It had modest deposits of gold and bauxite, which were effectively exploited. The dam was built across the Volta River to arrest water for irrigation and hydro-electric power.
6. Village people built roads and schools from the Government funds received for village projects.
7. Nkrumah also was known internationally for his movement for the Africans across the globe. He supported the Organization of African Unity, set up in 1963, maintaining ties with Russia and China, and “keeping Ghana under Commonwealth group of nations.