Nkrumah and the West

The developmental years of Ghana - the first state to become independent from colonialism in sub-Saharan Africa in 1957 - were marked by the United Kingdom's effort to showcase its former colony as a model of successful democracy export for the rest of Black Africa. They called it the "Ghana Experiment". Major Western powers like the United States and West Germany participated in the attempt to keep Ghana aligned with the West. As Ghana's President Kwame Nkrumah embarked on a bold anti-imperialistic, pan-African policy, Britain and the United States concerted a common strategy which accelerated Nkrumah's eventual downfall in 1966 and brought Ghana back into the Western sphere of influence.

Dr. Matteo E. Landricina earned his Master's at Marburg University and his Ph.D. at Roma Tre University. He presently works for the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees in Berlin.