1956 – The Founding of the All-African People's Conference Planning Committee

On May 18, 1956, the groundwork was laid for the All-African People’s Conference (AAPC) when leaders from across the continent initiated planning for a unified platform to resist colonialism and support liberation movements. Though the first formal conference occurred in Accra in 1958, the May 1956 formation of the AAPC planning committee is a lesser-known but critical moment in Pan-African history. The committee, inspired by the success of the Bandung Conference in Asia, sought to unite African leaders, revolutionaries, and intellectuals to forge a continental path to independence. Spearheaded by activists from Ghana, Guinea, and Sudan, the committee helped galvanize a continent-wide solidarity network that influenced anti-colonial uprisings and later African Union efforts. The planning stage of the AAPC marked a major milestone in Black internationalism, demonstrating that African unity was both a political strategy and a cultural imperative. It remains a foundational moment in global Black resistance history.