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The Council of Ewe
Associations of North America (CEANA) marked its 12th
Anniversary with fanfare and a medley of cultural
activities in the Hilton Mclean Tysons Corner Hotel in
the Washington, DC/Virginia area from Sept. 2nd to Sept.
4th, 2005. The theme for this year's convention is,
"Investment and Socioeconomic
Development: Critical Issues Across Eweland."
Dr. Mark Kutame, the
outgoing President of CEANA, kicked off the festivities
on Friday, Sept. 2nd, 2005 by thanking Washington, DC
for hosting the convention and by calling on all Ewes in
the diaspora to pool their resources together so as to
improve the socio-economic conditions of those at home.
In his report to the delegates on the 2004 - 2005
financial year, he enumerated the following
accomplishments:
1. A $2000.00 dollar
donation had been given to Dzodze Hospital for site
preparation for the installation of their CEANA-donated
x-ray machine.
2. CEANA awarded five
scholarships to deserving JSS students to enable them to
proceed to Senior Secondary School.
3. A CEANA scholarship
extension was granted to Mr. Eugene Amegbe to enable him
to continue his education at the University of Science
and Technology, Kumasi. Dr. Afeti of Ho Polytechnic and
Professor Devine Amenumey were appointed as his mentors.
4. CEANA had completed
its first School improvement project in Agu in the
Republic of Togo and efforts are continuing through Dr.
Kusiaku to locate a new school for assistance during the
2005-6 financial year.
5. CEANA wrote a protest
letter to President Kuffour of Ghana and President
Obasanjo of Nigeria (with copies to the United Nations
and the African Union) against the imposition of Faure
Gnassingbe on the Togolese people after the death of
Gnassingbe Eyadema and demanded that pressure be brought
on the RPT regime to relinquish power.
6. A very large number of
blankets were shipped to Ghana for distribution to
hospitals in Eweland.
Mr.William Adzimahe, the
President of Volta Club of Washington, DC and the host
of this year's convention warmly welcomed the delegates
to the conference and expressed regrets that Togbe Afede
XIV, the Agbogbomefia of Ho Asogli State and special
guest for the occasion could not be present because of
earlier commitments to visit China. He said he was not
discouraged and that CEANA would continue to seek
Togbe's contribution on issues relating to economic
development in Eweland. Mr. Adzimahe invited the
delegates to be involved in the deliberations so as to
find solutions to the obstacles to growth and
development in Eweland.
Speaking to the theme of
the convention, Dr Anukware Ketosugbo, hypothesized that
because of the rugged historical past of the Ewe people,
most of them have become very independent, fiercely
individualistic and unable to speak with one voice. He
cited the ongoing political victimization of Ewes in
Ghana, Togo and Benin to buttress his point. To counter
this phenomenon, he recommended the formation of
pressure groups to expose the machinations of
politicians to divide and pitch the Ewe people against
each other.
Dr. Ketosugbo also noted
that shortly after independence the Ewes in Ghana formed
about 60% of the civil service and the armed forces and
remarked that Eweland abounds in large reserves of
talents that could be tapped to meet the needs of the
21st Century. He recommended the establishment of
hi-tech
universities in Eweland to produce scholars of
competitive international standards for local, national
and international jobs.
Concerning agriculture, he recommended the
diversification from the production of food and export
crops to the cultivation of medicinal
herbs/plants for processing and sale. About tourism, he
mentioned the Vli waterfalls and the sandy Keta beaches,
among others, and recommended the
development of supportive services to increase access
and the number of tourist visits. In conclusion, Dr.
Ketosugbo invited participants to
expand their imagination so as to set high goals for
themselves and their children so that as they progress,
Eweland could grow with them.
Other dignitaries and
speakers in attendance were Mr.Erasmus K. Kalitsi, the
former Executive Director of Volta River Authority (VRA),
Mr. Francis Kalitsi of IFC, Dr. Kofi Anani and Dr. John
Afele both of the World Bank, Mr. Doe Ladzekpo, the
founder of the Afife Salt Project, Mr. Patrick Kukanu, a
graduate student of the University of Alberta and a
representative of the Ewe Dictionary Project. The
sponsors of the event: North American Airlines, Western
Union, Money Gram and many African-owned businesses were
also in attendance. Mr. Doe Ladzekpo sought funding for
the salt project; Mr. Kukanu talked about the problems
of the Ewe language and the Ewe Dictionary Project and
solicited assistance to purchase computers and audio
recording equipment. The IFC and World Bank staff gave
presentations on how community organizations could
benefit from international banks.
The highlight of the
occasion was a colorful Fundraising Dinner Dance on
Saturday Sept. 3rd, 2005. New members were also inducted
into the various levels of the CEANA Star Club. The
event, which attracted about 600 guests dressed in rich
African attire, was a cultural extravaganza complete
with a procession of chiefs, the crowning of a new CEANA
President, Mr. William Adzimahe, and cultural
performances by Ewe youths. Also in attendance were
representatives of the Ambassadors of Ghana and Benin.
For the CEANA
conventioneers, Sunday, Sept. 3rd, 2005 began very early
with an Interdenominational Church Service led by
Reverends Wurapa, Odzafi, Amedeka, Tordzro and Avortri.
In his sermon for the day, Rev. William Amedeka urged
Ewes to love one another and to involve God in their
daily activities in order to ensure success. Silver
collections were taken, one third of which were donated
to CEANA. In the afternoon, the activities converged on
Cabin John Regional Park in Maryland for a picnic where
traditional Ewe dishes were served amidst merriment and
cultural drumming and dancing. The festivities ended at
7:00 p. m. and most delegates returned to the hotel for
traditional "alobalo" and storytelling. On the following
day, all the delegates returned to their destinations
all over North America and Europe with a renewed sense
of unity, friendship and collaboration and better
insight into the obstacles to growth and development in
Eweland.
At the end of the
deliberations, Council of Representatives (COR) made the
following decisions for the 2005-2006 financial year:
1. To award CEANA Scholarships to (5) five new deserving
Senior Secondary School students, namely, Redeemer Gati,
Courage Gbeze, William Dogah, Constant Dabi and Mawunya
Amediku. Funds were also voted to continue school
improvement projects in the Republic of Togo.
2. To hold a CEANA
Convention in Ghana in 2007.
3. To support the
establishment of a university or universities in Eweland.
4. To adopt and support a
Faculty of one of the Eweland Universities to enable it
to produce scholars of international reputation.
6. To expand the revenue
base of CEANA by intensifying solicitations with
private businesses and philanthropic organizations.
7. To redesign the CEANA
website.
8. To appoint an internal
audit committee to audit the CEANA accounts.
The new President of
CEANA, Mr. William Adzimahe, the Council of
Representatives (COR) and the CEANA Secretariat are very
thankful to Ms. Hannah Afram for her endless efforts in
finding an excellent and yet affordable venue for the
convention. A similar appreciation also goes to all the
members of Volta Club and Ewes in the
Washington/Virginia area, especially the chairpersons of
the CEANA Convention Planning Sub-Committees, namely,
Mr. Eric Azuma, Mr. Kudjo Ave, Mr. Isaac Vodi, Mr. Edwin
Agbonyitor, Rev. William Amedeka, Mr. Frederick Hegbe,
Mrs. Georgina Nuwame and Mr. David Aku, for their
efforts in hosting a successful convention. Thanks for a
job well done.
The next CEANA Convention
will be in New York in August/September, 2006. We'll
meet you there!
Thank you.
Gordon M. K. Sabblah,
The CEANA Secretariat.
NOTE:
Proceedings of the CEANA Convention will soon be
available on VHS or DVD. To obtain copies, contact any
CEANA Chapter or Volta Club, Inc., at
wadzima1@msn.com
or write to P.O. Box 4721, Silver Spring, MD 20914
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