Central & Western Regions

The central and western regions of present day Ghana, as well as other coastal areas, played a prominent role in the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Forts and Castles built by the Dutch, Portuguese, Danes and British during the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries for use as trading posts, were utilized as centers for the transshipment of slaves to the Americas and the West Indies. Cape Coast Castle, and Elmina (St. George's) Castle, both UNESCO World Heritage Sites, are two of the many forts and castles along the coast line of Ghana, stand as testament to, "Slavery, A crime against Humanity."    Emancipation Day Festival, which takes place in August of each year, commemorates the Abolition of Chattel Slavery in the British Colonies in 1834 and in the Americas in 1865. This festival facilitates the payment of tribute to ancestors who endured the atrocities of Slavery. The high point of the first commemorative event in 1998 was the return of the remains of two African Ancestors, namely Samuel Carson from the United States of America, and Crystal from Jamaica who were re-interred at Assin Manso. The climax of the 1999 festival was the erection "Monument of Return" at the tomb of the returned African Ancestors at Assin Manso. This monument is in the memory of all Africans who lost their lives in the Slave Trade.