The United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) was a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

founded in 1947 whose aim was to bring about

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...

ian independence from their

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

colonial masters after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. The United Gold Coast Convention appointed its leaders to include

Kwame Nkrumah Kwame Nkrumah (born 21 September 190927 April 1972) was a Ghanaian politician, political theorist, and revolutionary. He was the first Prime Minister and President of Ghana, having led the Gold Coast to independence from Britain in 1957. An ...

, who was the Secretary General. However, upon an allegation for plans against Nkrumah's leadership, he was arrested and jailed. The UGCC leadership broke up and Kwame Nkrumah went on a separate way to set up the

Convention People's Party The Convention People's Party (CPP) is a socialist political party in Ghana based on the ideas of the first President of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah. The CPP was formed in June 1949 after Nkrumah broke away from the United Gold Coast Convention (UG ...

(CPP) for the purpose of self-governance. UGCC was founded in Saltpond that was the headquarters

History

In the 1940s, African merchants, such as

George Alfred Grant George Alfred Grant, popularly known as Paa Grant (15 August 1878 – 30 October 1956), was a merchant and politician in the Gold Coast

("Paa Grant"), were ready to finance the organization of a political movement to assure their commercial interests in the face of unfair colonial practices. The party was founded by

J. B. Danquah Joseph Kwame Kyeretwie Boakye Danquah (18 December 1895 – 4 February 1965) was a Ghanaian politician, scholar, lawyer, and one of the founding fathers of Ghana. He played a significant role in pre- and post-colonial Ghana, which was former ...

on 4 August 1947 by a combination of chiefs, academics and lawyers, including R. A. Awoonor-Williams,

Robert Samuel Blay Robert Samuel Blay, was a Ghanaian barrister and judge. He was a Justice of the Supreme Court of Ghana during the First Republic. He is often referred to as the first Nzema lawyer. He was president of the Ghana Bar Association on two occasions ...

Edward Akufo-Addo Edward Akufo-Addo (26 June 1906 – 17 July 1979) was a Ghanaian politician and lawyer. He was a member of the " Big Six" leaders of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) and one of the founding fathers of Ghana who engaged in the fight for ...

, and Emmanuel Obetsebi-Lamptey. On 10 December 1947,

returned to the Gold Coast, accepting Danquah's invitation to become the UGCC

General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

. Big Six member

Ebenezer Ako-Adjei Dr. Ebenezer Ako Adjei (17 June 1916 – 14 January 2002) was a Ghanaian statesman, politician, lawyer and journalist. He was a founding member of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), the first political party of Ghana (then Gold Coast). As ...

recommended inviting Nkrumah, whom he had met at Lincoln University. Nkrumah was offered a salary of £250, and Paa Grant paid the boat fare from

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

in England to the Gold Coast. Danquah and Nkrumah subsequently disagreed over the direction of the independence movement and parted ways after two years. Nkrumah went on to form the

(CPP) in 1949 and eventually became the first president of independent Ghana. There was a meeting between Nkrumah and members of the party which occurred in

Saltpond Saltpond is a town and the capital of the Mfantsiman Municipal District in the Central Region of South Ghana. Saltpond has a population of 24,689 people. Economy History Saltpond was in a state of economic decline since the landing beach was a ...

, a town in Central region. It was said Nkrumah rejected a proposal for the promotion of fundamental human rights. The UGCC performed poorly in the 1951 elections, winning only three seats. The following year, it merged with the National Democratic Party and disaffected members of the CPP, to form the

Ghana Congress Party The Ghana Congress Party was founded in May 1952 by Kofi Busia who also its leader. The party was formed by dissatisfied former Convention People's Party members, along with the United Gold Coast Convention The United Gold Coast Convention ( ...

References

History of Ghana Defunct political parties in Ghana 1947 establishments in Gold Coast (British colony) Political parties established in 1947 Political parties disestablished in 1952 {{Ghana-party-stub

History

See also

References