Accra (AFP)

The Anglo-Ghanaian Sylvia Arthur had always dreamed of sharing her passion for African literature and her impressive collection of books. Her dream came true with the opening of her magnificent library in Accra.

"Our literature has always been neglected, it is not valued, it is not taken seriously and it has never been archived," says the founder of the Library of Africa and the African Diaspora (LOATAD). "This is precisely the purpose of this library".

Sylvia Arthur worked in the communication sector in Europe until 2017, when she decided to return to live in Ghana and carry out her project on her savings.

"We started with one room, and now we have an entire house full of books!" Enthuses the owner of almost 4,000 books.

The new library, renovated and enlarged this year, was finally able to reopen its doors in early July in a quiet area of ​​Accra, after the lifting of the strict containment measures put in place to combat the coronavirus.

The space is bright and modern. The curious can settle in large sofas or carved wooden chairs, traditional of the kingdoms of West Africa and borrow books for an annual registration fee of 600 cedis (around 90 euros).

On the shelves, we find authors from almost all the countries of the continent, from the North (Naguib Mahfouz, Assia Djebar ...) to the South, with Doris Lessing, Yvonne Vera or the contemporary Petina Gappah, and books by almost all black writers from Europe, the United States or the Caribbean.

The collection also includes rare publications, which are sometimes no longer published.

- Black Lives Matter -

The Black Lives Matter movement, which had a worldwide impact, gave even more meaning to this project and Sylvia now wants to organize discussions, debates, but also residences of writers to exchange ideas around the history of the African diaspora or racism.

"I really believe that we need an initiative like this. It shows that our people are intelligent, sophisticated and gifted for the arts ... the opposite of everything we are taught in school" , she explains.

Ghana, which saw the birth of Kwame Nkrumah, one of the fathers of Pan-Africanism and the anti-colonial struggle, has always played an important role on the continent in terms of culture and memory.

The famous American writer and activist Maya Angelou lived in Accra in the early 1960s, during the wave of African independence, and already at the time, the Ghanaian government wanted to attract African-Americans to the country.

The current president, Nana Akufo-Addo relaunched the initiative in 2019, creating "the year of return" - four centuries after the departure of the first slave ship to the United States - urging African-Americans to "return to the House".

However, African literature and the black community in general, remains largely unknown in the country.

"I am really very impressed, especially by the collection of classic Pan-African authors," said AFP Appiah Kusi Adomako, upon entering the library.

"Everyone should come here to learn, learn about our history, our culture, otherwise we will lose our identity," says the passionate reader.

Nasirudeen Jabbaru, a young Ghanaian writer, also made the trip. "Most of these books are rare on the market and it is an inspiration to me," he says.

Hoping, one day, that it will also find its place on the shelves of this precious collection.

© 2020 AFP