Asantehene Selected For AU Kofi Annan Award
The King of the Asante Kingdom, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, will be celebrated at the next edition of the Africa Union Ambassadors Ball hosted by H.E. Hilda Suka-Mafudze, the African Union Permanent Representative to the United States in Washington, DC.
The King will at the event slated for March 2025, formally receive the AU Kofi Annan Award in recognition of his dedication to peace and unity in Ghana and beyond.
This was officially conveyed to the Manhyia Palace by Ambassador Suka-Mafudze on December 3, 2024 on a visit to Ghana to formally invite His Majesty to the event.
The Ambassador was accompanied to the Palace in Kumasi by Nana Agyeman Prempeh, the founder of Millennium Excellence Awards and Miss Jane Reindorf-Osei, the President of Africa Investment Network.
In her speech, she noted that the King and his works stood out as her team embarked on a research on the next personality to honour for leading the quest to empower and strengthen relations across Africa.
“This award is given to our people in recognition of the work that they have done which also takes me into the works that you have done to build peace in this country and also to build peace in the continent of Africa which I really do feel that requires recognition. The talk about you is a lot. The work you have done in peace not only here in Ghana but all over Africa. Your works are in demand all over. People talk about It. You are all over. We want to amplify that work into making Africa a better place. We are putting in effort which we are doing on our own. We are doing it for us. It’s for the people of Africa.”
She furthered, “When we researched, your name kept popping up. It said this is the man who deserves it. Your Majesty, that’s what we concluded when I sat with my team and I am here to present it to you.”
Her primary objective is to put the King and his works on the American map.
Challenge
His Majesty gladly accepted the invitation to attend the ball but emphasised that his presence would challenge the African continent and its diaspora.
According to him, Africa holds the sole responsibility to develop on its own through an effective intra-continental trade and collaborations.
He decried low trade among African countries, conflicts and lack interest in finding an effective solution to the compounding and multifaceted problems.
Meanwhile, he insisted that Africans in the diaspora must make it a point to invest in the continent.
“Giving me the award is about challenging ourselves,” he said.
“I am accepting it but we have to throw a challenge to everyone. I will come myself.”
Source: opemsuo.com/Hajara Fuseini
