Obama's trip to Ghana

Published July 23, 2009 @ 11:39AM PT

On July 11, 2009, President Obama visited Accra, Ghana in order to discuss the steps Africa needs to take in order to be coherent as a continent. The voyage to Ghana is significant for two reasons. First, this is the earliest trip to Africa any United State president has taken in their first term. Second, this trip is equally important as the first basis because the president of the United States is of African descent.  Although President Obama’s journey is noteworthy, what really supersedes his arrival is Obama’s purpose and vision for Africa. Unfortunately, some parts of the Motherland are experiencing a myriad of turmoil due to the pillaging of resources and the global community’s inaction to aggressively attack human rights violations in Zimbabwe, Somalia, the Niger Delta, Uganda, Sudan, and Democratic Republic of Congo. So, why hasn’t the president visited these troubled lands that are in desperate need of his presence? Well, Ghana was selected because of their peaceful governance over the years. President Obama believes that a democratic, transparent, and accountable government will reconstruct Africa into a place of security and prosperity for its people, and Ghana has exhibited these characteristics.

Prior to the president’s expedition to Ghana, a press conference moderated by Emira Woods was held discussing what the Obama administration needs to accomplish in order to secure peace and prosperity for the people of regional conflict.  According to Nii Akuetteh, “the support of African dictators must cease.” The United States cannot combat human violations while “lying in bed with dictators”. The close relationship with African dictators has led to the nonchalant attitude toward human right violations, especially concerning the Democratic Republic of Congo, which death tolls currently exceed 5.4 million since 1998. The United States placing troops in African countries compromises sovereignty and interferes with the nation being multilateral. Another major issue is health. HIV and AIDS continue to be the leading cause of needless deaths. According to the World Bank report, more than 1.7 million people will be at risk for treatment by the year’s end. As reported by Matthew Kavangh, there is a medical apartheid occurring, and 11 million people are not being serviced, which is one-third of people not being aided in Africa. Finally, the “scramble” for Africa continues to be a massive problem. The pilfering by corporations and foreign countries has led to child labor, unfair labor rights, fueling armed conflicts, degradation of environments and the pillaging of countries.  People are equated to mere profit, and refugee camps are their homes. The Obama’s administration needs to handle the many dilemmas plaguing Africa. The United States’ government must focus on policies that benefit Africans and Africa; especially since Africa’s well being plays a pivotal role in the world's economy.