Renowned Pan-Africanist and anti-corruption advocate Prof. P.L.O. Lumumba, has reminded Africans to stop believing that education on the continent only started with colonization.
Speaking at the 21st Century Education Public Lecture Series at the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), Lumumba said many people mistakenly talk about Africa as if its existence began after the colonial period.
“Today when we talk about Africa, we talk about her in the manner in which we know her after the colonial project. We talk about Ghana as if Ghana started existence in 1957.”
He expressed disappointment in how Africa’s rich history has been overlooked.
“We talk about the 54 recognized countries as if there were no life before they regained their independence.”
According to him, education existed in Africa long before Europeans set foot on the continent.
“We talk about education as if prior to the coming into the continent of the colonizers led by the Portuguese, the British, the French, the Dutch, the Italians, the Germans, and even the Arabs — we did not exist and there was no education. That is a falsehood,” he charged.
Lumumba stressed that Africa was ahead of many parts of the world in knowledge and civilisation.
“When the Europeans were still living in darkness, here in West Africa they were organized kingdoms. We know there were universities. We know there was education that did not entail the issuance of certificates as the badge of education,” he said.
