04/02/2026
The Desk was invited as a member of the Englewood-Ghana Sankofa Economic and Cultural Delegation traveling to Ghana recently. The delegation was championed and sponsored by IL State Senator Willie Preston in partnership with the .
The goal of the 8-day journey was to develop and strengthen the Englewood connection to Ghana through economic opportunity, cultural exchange, education partnerships and global collaboration.
During our time there, the delegation was further educated on the emotional and economic impact of the transatlantic slave trade including the significance of “Door of No Return”. It was shared during our trip that more than 12 million Africans were captured with only 2 out 10 surviving the journey to the Americas. Ghana has been independent from the United Kingdom for 69 years. While they have made great progress, they still struggle with the lack of infrastructure to truly benefits from its natural resources such as gold and cacao.
In addition to understanding the history of Ghana, the delegation met with government officials, representatives of the King of Cape Coast and networked with small businesses to identify opportunities to collaborate.
We are thankful for the opportunity to participate and appreciate all the hard work in coordinating and curating this experience.
