Friday, 14th November, 2025
Hon Kofi Arko Nokoe
Evalue-Ajomoro-Gwira
Mr Speaker, I rise today with a deep sense of pride and reverence to draw the attention of this august House to one of Africa’s— and indeed Ghana’s—most remarkable but often forgotten son, Anton Wilhelm Amo, also known as William Anton Amo.
Born around 1703 in Axim, in what was then the Gold Coast. Amo’s life defies the limitations history often placed on Africans in the era of slavery and colonial domination. Taken as a young child to Europe—reportedly as a “gift” from the Dutch West India Company to a German Duke, Amo overcame the traumatic foundations of his displacement to rise as the first African to attend and teach at European universities.
Mr Speaker, his journey from the coastal town of Axim to the lecture halls of the University of Halle, Wittenberg, and Jena in Germany, is nothing short of extraordinary. He earned a doctorate in Philosophy, became a lecturer and published academic works, and debated the greatest minds of the enlightenment. His contributions to literacy, Philosophy, and historical discourse challenged racial stereotypes at a time when Africans were viewed as inferior beings.
Amo wrote extensively on rational thought, legal rights, and the dignity of the human being—ideas that resonate with today’s principles of justice and equality. What makes his legacy even more profound is the contradiction it represents. Anton Amo was an African slave who rose to intellectual eminence in 18th Century Europe, a feat that remains inspirational centuries later. His achievements remind us of the resilience, intellect, and potential of the African spirit, even in the face of unspeakable adversity.
Mr Speaker, the story of Anton Wilhelm Amo is not only one of historical importance; it is a story of motivation and purpose for the Ghanaian youth. From his life, we learn that where one begins does not determine where they can go. We learn the importance of education, perseverance, identity, and the pursuit of excellence. In him, we see that even in chains, the African mind could soar.
Mr Speaker, I call on this House and the Government of Ghana to take deliberate steps to honour the legacy of this great son of our land. Among the ways we can do this are:
1. Instituting an annual Anton Amo Lecture Series on African philosophy, history, and education;
2. Erecting a monument or renaming an academic institution in his honour, especially in the Nzema area or nationally;
3. Integrating his life and works into Ghana’s educational curriculum to inspire generations to come;
4. Partnering with German institutions to preserve and promote his writings and philosophy through joint academic research;
5. Establishing a scholarship or academic chair in his name focused on philosophy, African studies, and post-colonial history.
Mr Speaker, Anton Wilhelm Amo is not just a historical figure—he is a symbol of African brilliance, endurance, and contribution to global knowledge. Let us lift his name from the footnotes of European academic journals into the consciousness of every Ghanaian child. For in honouring Amo, we honour our own shared heritage.
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for this opportunity.
Hon Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah
Takoradi
Mr Speaker, thank you for the opportunity.
Anton Amo, as he was affectionately called, is expected to be one of the first professors of Ghanaian origin. As a Regional Minister, when I was writing the Discover Western Region, I did some literary research on him, and it is known that he had died at a fort in Shama.
Mr Speaker, as of 2020, 2024 and 2025, a lot of places, streets, squares in Germany had been named after him for the work he had done on the mind, and even disputing major theses of Locke and others. Such a brilliant mind coming from Ghana clearly shows that no matter where you are born, you can shine. I believe that if you take the age at which he got his PhD, around 27 years, and professorship around 32 years, you will come to realise that Anton Wilhelm Amo had done so well to project Ghana and the black race.
In fact, in his time, there was a lot of controversies around him in Germany. When he also came to Ghana, the white man, the West Indies company that had brought him to Ghana, were also afraid that because of the enlightenment he had gotten from Germany, he might spark some kind of revolution among the Africans against the white. That is one of the most important reasons why they kept him in the Fort San Sebastian, in Shama.
Mr Speaker, I do believe that all young people should appreciate that no matter where they are, no matter the colour of their skin, they can shine and be of benefit to society and the world at large. Naturally, you do not need to come from Accra to be important. If you are in your corner in Keta, in your corner in Savelugu, you are in your corner in Axim, you can still shine and make a contribution for the progress of Ghana and the world.
With these few words, Mr Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to add to the Statement of my Hon Member from Evalue-Ajomoro-Gwira Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
Hon Seidu Mahama Alidu
Tamale Central
Mr Speaker, thank you so much for giving me the opportunity.
I also want to thank my Hon Colleague for the Statement. I think, Anton William Amo is one of the most celebrated scholars across the world. His research, his academic publications, his teachings has been exemplary and actually portraying not just the Ghanaian and the African as the best of scholars in the world, but has actually opened up opportunity for people from the developing world to be able to compete with those in the developed world.
Mr Speaker, his legacy has been dotted across the world. In a lot of universities, academic institutions and departments have been named after him. There have been series of lectures to honour his memory and his legacy and contribution to academic work. His work was not only on philosophy, but it also opened up the door for resilience and equality and to upgrade the minds of the black man who at that particular point in time was thought to be inferior, to compete and challenge the dominant minds of the European world in the period of enlightenment.
Mr Speaker, I think his work has been celebrated across the world, but specifically I know in the University of Ghana as far back as 2021, there was the Median Inaugural Lecture and Symposium organised by the Marian Institute for Advanced Studies in Africa, the Department of Philosophy and then the African Institute, Kwame Nkrumah Institute of African Studies, to honour his memory. I think this was chaired by the German Ambassador to Ghana.
So, I truly support the work that he has done and agree with the Hon Member that we should do more to celebrate people like that who have inspired all of us who have studied in Europe to be closely associated to his legacy and memory, and gives us a lot of opportunity to also do a lot to open more doors for our young ones who are coming up and to be able to contest in terms of academic might with the developed world in spite of the advancement in technology and the academic resources that they have.
Mr Speaker, thank you so much for the opportunity.
Hon Isaac Boamah-Nyarko
Effia
Yes, thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
Rightly so, coming from the Western Region, I want to commend the author of this Statement, the Member of Parliament for Evalue-Ajomoro-Gwira, for bringing to our attention as a House, one of the most brilliant minds Ghana could ever produce in the 17th century.
Mr Speaker, William Anton Amo was born, as the Member said, in 1703, and by the age of four years he had been taken abroad for adoption. Over his days and years, he grew up to become one of the most powerful challenging minds that the world, particularly in Germany, where he brought his scholarliness into public display.
One of the most intriguing statements that he reflected upon, for which purpose I would like to read to challenge this House, and I quote from his book, Of the Human Mind. He stated with your permission I beg to quote: “Whatever feels lives, whatever lives depends on nourishment, whatever lives and depends on nourishment grows. Whatever is of this nature is in the end resolved into its basic principles. Whatever comes to be resolved into its basic principles is a complex. Every complex has its constituent parts. Whatever this is true is of its divisible body. If therefore the human mind feels, it follows that it is a divisible body.”
Mr Speaker, I am sure many people would even be confused in understanding what Anton Wilhelm Amo sought to speak on in this particular quotation. But importantly, as a country, we have not been able to honour such great people for their works and contribution to this country. That is why, if we listened to my Colleague, the Hon Member for Takoradi and the other Hon Member, they talked about Mr Amo being honoured in other jurisdictions, but not being honoured enough as a country.
So, if there is a request from the Hon Member for Ghana to celebrate him and to honour him, it is the right call. That call is also to challenge Ghanaian academia, because we have all this history with strong people, who have contributed to global minds. But as a country today, with all the education, and development that have gone on, how have we been able to transform our contemporary times, even to bring the needed development that we want to see? So, we begin by celebrating William Anton Amo for his contribution to this world, and also to remind ourselves as a people that we also have to do well to contribute to the development of this country. We sit here as Members of Parliament and we owe it a duty, in our own small way, to also contribute to the development of this country.
Mr Speaker, with these few words, I want to commend the maker of the Statement for bringing this to our attention.
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