2020-03-06 Fri

The Republic of Ghana celebrates its Independence Day on March 6. On this day in 1957, Ghana proclaimed its independence from the United Kingdom, becoming the first sub-Saharan African country to split from the British colonial empire. The holiday is considered to be the national day of Ghana.

During the Middle Ages, the area of present-day Ghana was home to a number of powerful kingdoms such as the Ashanti Empire and the Kingdom of Dagbon. The first Europeans to make contact with the locals were the Portuguese people who came to Western Africa in the 15th century. The British Empire was drawn to the Gold Coast in the early 19th century.

The Second World War significantly weakened the colonial powers, kicking off the decolonization process, as the native population of many colonies demanded more autonomy. Legislative elections were held for the first time in the Gold Coast in the year 1951. It was won by Convention People’s Party led by Kwame Nkrumah. On August 3, 1956, the newly elected Legislative Assembly voted for the independence of the Gold Coast under the name Ghana, effective March 6, 1957.

The first Ghanian Banknotes were issued in the year 1958. The first series came with the denominations of 10Ghanaian shilling, 1Ghanaian pound, and 5Ghanaian pounds. The banknote depicts the government building on the obverse along with the denomination and the name of the bank. The reverse, on the other hand, depicts the logo of Bank of Ghana flanked by cocoa trees.

Image Courtesy: colnect.com