Initiated by the current Beninese president, Patrice Talon, “My Afro Origins” program is intended to ultimately diversify Benin’s human resources and boost tourism, but primarily help people of African descent go back home.
My Afro Origins is a digital platform developed last year by the Beninese government to assist persons of African origin all over the world in tracing and legally claiming their ancestral roots, including the option of obtaining Beninese nationality.
It was established to fill a long-standing identity void felt by Afro-descendants whose forefathers were displaced during the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
To this effect, the Beninese government also plans to construct a new International Museum of Memory and Slavery this year at the historic home of Francisco Felix de Souza, a well-known trafficker of enslaved people in the 18th and nineteenth centuries.
Benin’s strategy is similar to earlier initiatives on the continent, such as Ghana’s 2019 “Year of Return,” which promoted reestablishing ties with ancestral lands for people of African heritage.
So far, as per data from the country’s Justice Ministry, around 50 people have migrated to Benin as a result of the program, thanks to its central ambassador, movie legend Spike Lee.
American Celebrities and My Afro Origins
Last year, in July, the Republic of Benin designated the acclaimed director and his wife, Tonya Lewis Lee, as thematic ambassadors to the Afro-descendant diaspora in the United States.
At the time, American R&B singer Ciara was among the first people to receive Beninese citizenship, alongside Tonya Lee.
As reported by Reuters, Ciara sang hits like “Level Up” during a set that lasted until three in the morning at a concert in Ouidah last week as part of an annual voodoo festival.
Ciara’s husband, NFL quarterback Russel Wilson, also expressed his intentions to apply for Beninese citizenship using the program.
Foreign Minister Olushegun Adjadi Bakari revealed that to apply for the program, candidates must be at least eighteen years old, present documentation or a DNA test confirming their ties to the continent, and not be nationals of another African nation