Sankofa research

Start date: October 2023

End date: October 2024

Charity:  Het Fonds voor Cultuurparticipatie

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In November 2023, students from Suriname traveled to Ghana for an orientation and study visit, where they visited the cities of Accra, Kumasi and Cape Coast.

The participants in the Sankofa project were all students at the Africana Development Course of the Anton de Kom University of Suriname. This was an initiative of student Renate Sluisdom, "to go back to be able to continue." The intention is to gain knowledge, experience and information in Ghana regarding matters that existed before slavery, because: "The history of the Afro-Surinamese does not begin with slavery. We are looking for knowledge and experiences that we can take back to Suriname.

Knowledge that was taken from us because of slavery; knowledge that was very common for our ancestors but must be rediscovered by us; knowledge with which we want to enrich and educate descendants of slavery and others in Suriname. The latter is especially important to us: the Sankofa idea: we must return to retrieve what has been lost, in order to ultimately be able to move on,” according to the group members.

The institutional organization is in the hands of the Broos Institute, the foundation that is committed to implementing more Afrocentric perspectives in regular, Eurocentrically dominated education.

In the context of the Slavery Commemoration Year, the Broos Institute has received funds for this project from the Fund for Cultural Participation.

For the final report, please contact the Broos Institute