Pan-African Powerhouses: The Interwoven Stories of Ghana and Tanzania

Positioned as fathers of Pan-Africanism on the continent, and hailed as heroes in the 21st century Nyerere and Nkrumah are two of the most highly regarded leaders of the independence era. African Studies research on Nkrumah and Nyerere often spotlights their Pan-African philosophies and their roles in developing Ghana and Tanzania as newly independent nation states. There is little research on the Pan-African conversation they were engaged in since Ghana’s independence and the intersections of their Pan-African projects.
My book project seeks to explore the similarities and intersections between Nkrumah and Nyerere’s Pan-African philosophy and practice with a specific focus of Pan-African institutions. It will explore the history, role and connections to the internationalist movement that key institutions in Ghana and Tanzania had during the height of the Pan-African movement. It will juxtapose the support provided by Tanzania and Ghana to liberation movements, freedom fighters and the hosting of Pan-African gatherings as central to the Pan-African agenda of the era. Utilizing the Pan-African philosophies of Nkrumah and Nyerere during that period this book will underscore the similarities in the Pan-African projects and the points of divergence particularly in relationship to the regional and continental road to African unity.