LONDON, 6 March 2007 – As communities in the UK and around the world commemorate Ghana’s 50th anniversary of independence from British colonial rule today, the Black Cultural Archives (BCA) has announced that it will be delivering a leading-edge heritage project to commemorate the nation’s achievement.

Thanks to a £49,900 Your Heritage grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and support from the London Borough of Lambeth, BCA’s Ghana Jubilee season will explore how Ghana and Ghanaians in the UK have impacted on Britain’s heritage through an exciting programme of exhibitions, lectures, elders’ oral history projects, youth events and family workshops. BCA is collaborating with the Ghana High Commission and a range of institutions and community groups in London, including the British Museum, Royal Geographical Society and the School of Oriental and African Studies to deliver its Ghana Jubilee programme. His Excellency Mr Annan Arkyin Cato Ghana High Commissioner to the United Kingdom said:
"I am pleased to lend the support of my Office to the work of the Black Cultural Archives as it seeks to enrich the cultural landscape by disseminating Black heritage in the UK. I am hopeful that the contacts between the Ghana High Commission and the Black Cultural Archives will deepen and become even more productive and enriching during Ghana's Golden
Jubilee celebrations." Paul Reid - Director, Black Cultural Archives said: “BCA’s Ghana Jubilee season is a prime
opportunity for our audiences to reflect on the legacy and structures of hope put in place by Independence movements in the late 50s and early 60s.

We seek to enable communities tounite to commemorate Ghana’s landmark anniversary through our diverse programme of events. From March through to August 2007, BCA will create a variety of forums for
independence memories, creative and intellectual expression and visual testimony.” BCA’s Ghana Jubilee season will generate a wealth of material that will complement its archival mission to document the presence of African and Caribbean communities in Britain.

BCA will make this information as widely accessible as possible. Much of the material will be
available on the Ghana Jubilee season website, designed by leading creative production
company Steel Drum Studios. BCA’s Ghana Jubilee season website will launch mid-March
2007 at www.bcaheritage.org.uk/ghanajubilee.