| African Liberation Day | |
|---|---|
| Also called | African Freedom Day |
| Observed by | member states of the African Union |
| Type | international; cultural and historical |
| Date | May 25 |
| Related to | Africa Day |
African Liberation Day on May 25 is an annual holiday in various countries in Africa, coinciding with African Union's Africa Day.
On April 15, 1958, in the city of Accra, Ghana, African leaders and political activists gathered at the first Conference of Independent African States. It was attended by representatives of the governments of Egypt (which attended as part of the United Arab Republic), Ethiopia, Ghana, Liberia, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia, and representatives of the National Liberation Front of Algeria, and the Union of the Peoples of Cameroon. The conference was significant in that it represented the first pan-African Conference held on African soil.
The Conference called for the founding of African Freedom Day, a day to “mark each year the onward progress of the liberation movement, and to symbolize the determination of the People of Africa to free themselves from foreign domination and exploitation.”
Five years later, after the First Conference of Independent African States in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, another historic meeting occurred. On May 25, 1963, leaders of thirty-two independent African States met to form the Organization of African Unity (OAU). By then more than two thirds of the continent had achieved independence, mostly from imperial European states. At this meeting, the date of Africa Freedom Day was changed from April 15 to May 25, and Africa Freedom Day was declared African Liberation Day (ALD).