ACCRA CONCERT ATTRACTS MASS SUPPORT FOR GLOBAL CALL TO ACTION AGAINST POVERTY

Thouseands of people people packed into Ghana's Independence Square in Accra on Saturday  3 September 2005 for the marathon 15 hour Africa Standing Tall Against Poverty Concert featuring Africa's leading musicians, leading civil society personalities and anti poverty campaigners. The concert was telecast live on Metro TV, attracting a television audience of over 700,000 within Ghana alone.

"This is a great unifying event" said Mac Tontoh, one of  the headline acts. "Africa is speaking with one voice and our leaders and the world must listen."

'Great to see so many people here today. You are all terrific!", exclaimed  the Catholic ArchBishop of Accra, Palmer Buckle, "I am so glad to be here, to add my voice and that of the church  to this unique campaign to eradicate poverty from Africa. We cannot turn back!"

Kumi Naidoo, chair of the GCAP Facilitation Group, the main sponsors of the concert received great applause from the crowd when he spoke powerfully about the growing mass movement against poverty in Africa and the responsibilities of the Millennium Summit assembly in New York.

The colourful Africa Standing Tall Against Poverty event, proved to be a powerful campaigning platform for the Global Call to Action Against Poverty. It started at 10 am with a masquerade procession through the streets of Accra to the Independence Square. The concert  itself  kicked off dramatically with "Poverty is Slavery", a sketch featuring chained slaves, and Kings Jubilee, the Liberian accapella group, singing Bob Marley's "Redemption Song."

Kwasi Adu Amankwa, General Secretary of the Ghana TUC, host of the event gave the welcome speech to great applause.  'I bring you solidarity greetings from the TUC. For 60 years, we have been fighting to eradicate poverty. Today, and looking at the crowd, there are a lot more of us to accomplish this noble task".

Over 30 music groups and leading musicians mounted the stage, all evoking the spirit of solidarity and the importance of Africa speaking with a collective voice to fight poverty. Most artists called for the total eradication of poverty from Africa, with chants and audience responses. The musical headline included Seun Kuti, Mahotella Queens, Daddy Showkey, Salif Keita, Mac Tontoh, Orlando Julius and Obuor, who stole the show with his fire dancers. The show rolled on with excitement, the audience increasing dramatically as night fell. Eric Wainaina, one of Kenya's leading performers was introduced by Ali Mwangola, also from Kenya. The crowd waved enthusiastically to Wainaina's music.

Several campaigners from numerous NGO's, youth and student volunteers took part in the concert organisation, manning stalls, distributing white bands and leaflets, encouraging people to text anti poverty messages and raising awareness about the need to eradicate the scourge of poverty from Africa.