Country Director for International Association of World Peace Advocate and the United Nations Peace Ambassador to Ghana, His Excellency (H.E.) Ambassador Dr. Samuel Owusu has appealed to Ghanaian leaders to develop a policy for its indigenous people.
According to him, the development of this policy has the potential to advance the progress of Ghanaians. Ambassador Dr. Sam Owusu made this appeal in an interview with some Canadian and Norwegian Television Journalists at the 23rd Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues 2024 in New York – USA.
The 23rd Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (PFII 23) which is currently ongoing is focusing on the theme, “Enhancing Indigenous Peoples’ Right to Self-determination in the Context of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Emphasizing the Voices of Indigenous Youth.”
The session is at the moment discussing the six mandated areas of the Permanent Forum (economic and social development, culture, environment, education, health, and human rights), with reference to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
He said, “Indigenous people play a major role in the Ghanaian economy but there’s no recognition, appreciation and platform for them. I believe that it is high time such opportunities were created for them”.
“A time has come that we need to look into that area of not giving opportunities to indigenous people because Ghana and by extension Africa cannot have a strong and robust economy without the involvement of indigenous people. These are the people that preserve the land”, the UN Peace Ambassador added.
Ambassador Dr. Sam Owusu who doubles as the Country Director for International Association of World Peace Advocate, believes that culture plays a significant role in the economic development through the area of tourism, stressing that, Ghanaian and African leaders must prioritize their culture and traditions.
“People travel to Ghana to see how the people live their lives, the food of the people, the dressing of the people, the language of the people and the culture of the people. These are some ingredients to spicing up the economic growth through tourism with the engagement of the indigenous people”, he emphasized.
Ambassador Dr. Samuel Owusu, who is also the Head Pastor of Pottersvile Church in Accra (Ghana), urged Ghanaian Leaders as a matter of urgency, to formulate policies on issues affecting indigenous people if they want to see economic growth. He is the only Ghanaian participant attending the summit.
Written by Hayford Safo Adjei
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