The Borough of Brooklyn in New York City in the United States of America has named a street at Bed-Stuy after Ghana to highlight the country’s leading role in building bridges among the global African Family.
Bed-Stuy has been a centre of African American culture since the early 20th century and home to many cultural icons.
The street, named Bed-Stuy/Ghana Way, cements the strategic partnership between Ghana and Brooklyn.
Making the announcement and presentation at a “Destination Ghana” event at the Weeksville Heritage Center, a New York City Council Member for the 36th District, representing Bedford-Stuyvesant and northern Crown Heights in Brooklyn, Mr Robert E. Cornegy Jr, on behalf of the people of Bed-Stuy and the Borough of Brooklyn, commended Ghana for the Year of Return initiative and its follow up, the Beyond the Return project.
The Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dr Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, and the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Tourism Authority, Mr Akwasi Agyeman, have been staking Ghana’s claim and engaging several business and opinion leaders in New York to promote the Ghana destination.
Dr Awal thanked Mr Cornegy Jr and threw an invitation to the audience, made up of politicians, business leaders, the clergy and students, to build on the goodwill for mutual growth.
Visit, invest in Ghana
The minister said Ghana was a country at the centre of the world, with attractive investment opportunities.
He, therefore, urged African-Americans to visit Ghana to reconnect to their roots and also explore the many business opportunities available.
For his part, Mr Agyeman presented the programmes lined up this December in Ghana and also touched on a proposed independence trade mission in March 2022.
Dr Leonard Jeffries Jr, a well-known Pan- Africanist, who was in the audience, was elated to see that Ghana would forever be part of the rich history of Bed-Stuy and Brooklyn.