PLO Lumumba delivered a speech at UEW Plublic Lecture Series

The renowned Pan-Africanist and Kenyan professional lawyer, Prof. Patrick Loch Otieno Lumumba, delivered a thought-provoking speech at the University of Education, Winneba Public Lecture Series on April 11, 2025.

The lecture series was an event set by the university to address discourse in the Ghanaian and African education systems.

In his address at UEW, Professor PLO Lumumba emphasized the pivotal role of education in Africa's development. He highlighted that while Africa has abundant natural resources, the continent's true wealth lies in its human capital.

Lumumba stressed that education should not merely be about acquiring certificates but should aim to cultivate critical thinking, innovation, and a deep understanding of African history and values. He urged African leaders and educators to prioritize education systems that empower students to think independently and contribute meaningfully to the continent's progress.

As his public speeches have always been passionately directed towards the pressing issues in Africa, Lumumba took the opportunity of the platform to remind his audience about the ideals and initiatives of early African thinkers on education and other sectors of the continent's development.

He said, "We in Africa have bought the brand of abuse, and that which we had was disrupted ... we had our own education system, and we must visit the past and bring it to the present as we move forward to the 21st-century future." He backed up his statement by citing some systems of education that existed in Africa. Typical examples are the 14th-century Sundiata Keita declaration of human rights and the Mandian charter.

He teased the current education systems in Africa, saying they produce graduates who cannot think innovatively and solve critical problems of the continent. He said the systems that we are still using are those that were laid down by the colonialists to train Africans who will support their imperialist agenda.

Photo: UEW

He called on governments and educators to analyze and amend our education system from scratch in order to produce citizens who will build the Africa we want and fulfill the vision of the founding fathers.

The public lecture series by the the University of Education, Winneba, was organized on the theme "Empowering Minds and Shaping the Continent for the 21st Century." The lecture involved speeches by Dr. Samuel Koranteng-Pipim, a UN leadership expert who talked about new developments in education; Dr. Clement Abas Apaak, Ghana's deputy minister of education; Dr. Emond Moukala, who doubled up as chairman of the occasion; and Prof. Agyeman Badu Akosa.

The purpose of the lecture series was to address the challenges in African education and bring out ways to empower the minds of Africans with new education systems to shape the continent for the 21st century.