Dzifa Abla Gomashie, Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, has officially launched the media campaign for the 17th edition of the Pan African Historical Theatre Festival (PANAFEST) 2025.
An event strategically designed to align with Ghana’s Emancipation Day commemoration, powerfully reaffirms the nation’s role as a beacon of cultural pride and Pan-African unity.
“As we gather here today, let us remind ourselves that PANAFEST is far more than a festival,” Dzifa Gomashie stated. “It is a spiritual, cultural, and intellectual movement; a platform that repositions Ghana as a homeland for people of African descent seeking reconnection, healing, and a shared sense of purpose and dignity.”
She emphasized that this year’s celebration carries even deeper significance against the backdrop of current global racial tensions, renewed calls for reparative justice, and the growing reclamation of African identity.
“Ghana stands resilient in championing a new African narrative through the Black Star Experience,” she affirmed. “It is therefore fitting that the theme for PANAFEST and Emancipation Day 2025 is ‘Let Us Speak of Reparative Justice, Pan-African Artistic Activism.'”
The Minister clarified that the 2025 edition of PANAFEST is not merely a continuation of a cherished tradition but rather the reawakening of a global cultural mission.
Meanwhile Maame Efua Houdzeto, Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Tourism Authority, emphasized that this year’s theme profoundly resonates with the core spirit of PANAFEST, underscoring the urgent need for a unified African voice that remembers, speaks, heals, creates, and reclaims. She stated that reparative justice is a fundamental necessity for dignity and historical redress, not a matter for debate.
She revealed that under the 2025 theme, PANAFEST will showcase artistic activism as both a form of protest and a pathway to healing. The festival will feature a dynamic series of events, including Dramatic re-enactments, Academic symposia, Youth conversations, Exhibitions and Diaspora dialogues.
According to her, these events aim to amplify diverse African voices across various art forms, from spoken word and theatre to dance, visual arts, traditional drumming, and digital storytelling. The GTA is collaborating with the PANAFEST Foundation, the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, and international partners to ensure these platforms are vibrant and impactful.
Maame Efua Houdzeto emphasised that the launch also serves as an open invitation to global media, the diaspora, civil society, artists, scholars, traditional leaders, and youth to participate and amplify the festival’s critical theme, highlighting the media’s crucial role in bridging this message to the wider world.
She expressed optimism that in alignment with Ghana’s broader National Reset Agenda, PANAFEST 2025 will further highlight the pivotal role of culture and heritage tourism as catalysts for national transformation. This agenda appears to be a government-wide initiative to revitalize various sectors, including the economy and social development, with culture and tourism playing a key part in positioning Ghana as a formidable cultural and intellectual powerhouse.
This year’s festival is set to take place from July 18 to August 2, 2025.
Since its inception in 1992, PANAFEST has served as a symbolic initiative to reflect on the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, honor ancestors, confront the past, and forge a path forward in unity and creativity. It has evolved into an internationally recognized platform for Africans and people of African descent to engage in candid conversations, profound cultural expression, and vital ancestral reconnection
This comprehensive approach aims to deepen the engagement with Ghana’s rich history and the broader narrative of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, fostering a profound sense of connection and understanding among all participants.
Story By: Eugenia Ewoenam Osei
