He and senior members of the African National Congress (ANC) held talks on Sunday but no details of their meeting have been released.

Facing corruption allegations, Mr Zuma was replaced as ANC leader in December.

Party leaders, who may be trying to oust Mr Zuma before his State of the Nation address later this week, will hold an emergency meeting on Monday.

Mr Zuma, who spent time in prison for his part in the fight against apartheid, is most of the way through his second – and last – term as president.

Julius Malema, an opposition leader and former ANC member, said on Twitter that Mr Zuma had been asked to stand down but had refused.

Why does the ANC want to remove him?

Mr Zuma’s presidency has been overshadowed by allegations of corruption.

In recent years his links to the wealthy-Indian born Gupta family, who are alleged to have influenced the government through their relationship with Mr Zuma, have caused his popularity to plummet. In South Africa, it has become known as “state capture”.

Both Mr Zuma and the Guptas deny the allegations.

Then there is also the country’s struggling economy, which has been adversely affected by political infighting in recent years.

As a result, many in the ANC fear his presidency has become toxic – and is hurting the party’s standing.

That appeared to be borne out at the 2016 local elections, when the ANC lost ground to the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).

With a general election set for 2019, the ANC will be keen to distance itself from any more negative press – and therefore it is perhaps not surprising that Mr Zuma’s deputy, Cyril Ramaphosa, was elected the party leader in South Africa in December on an anti-corruption platform.

However, Mr Zuma still has his supporters within the ANC – including three of the top six – so nothing is definite.

What are the allegations against him?

• 2005: Charged with corruption over multi-billion dollar 1999 arms deal – charges dropped shortly before he becomes president in 2009
• 2016: Court orders he should be charged with 786 counts of corruption over the deal
• 2005: Charged with raping family friend – acquitted in 2006
• 2016: Court rules he breached his oath of office by using government money to upgrade private home in Nkandla – he has repaid the money
• 2017: South Africa’s public protector said he should appoint judge-led inquiry into allegations he profiteered from relationship with wealthy Gupta family – he denies allegations, as have the Guptas
• 2018: Zuma approves inquiry

What happens next?

Monday’s emergency meeting brings together the ANC’s National Working Committee, made up of 20 people, who will hear a report back from the weekend’s meeting with the party leadership.

Depending on what they decide, they could then call a meeting of the 80-member National Executive Committee (NEC) in order to vote on whether to recall Mr Zuma.

However, if they do recall him Mr Zuma still has to agree to resign, as his predecessor Thabo Mbeki did.

Could Zuma follow Mugabe out the door?

Milton Nkosi, BBC News, Johannesburg

President Jacob Zuma’s days are now numbered.

Many here in South Africa are saying it is no longer a matter of if, but when, he will go.

Although, it seems that the deep divisions which existed within the ANC ahead of the elective conference last December still prevail.

There was a lot of talk about unity under the new party leader, Cyril Ramaphosa.

Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe (left, with Zuma in 2015) was ousted in November

But unity in the ANC is becoming like a mirage. Those who support Mr Zuma want him to complete his term next year, as stipulated by the constitution.

But those who have been complaining about the long list of corruption allegations want him to leave, now.

Pressure is also mounting from outside the ANC.

The opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) are considering going to court to prevent Mr Zuma from presenting the annual State of the Nation address on Thursday. And they are also threatening to propose a motion of no-confidence before the president addresses the nation.

Many in South Africa are thinking back to November last year, when members of the ruling party in neighbouring Zimbabwe told then President Robert Mugabe to step down. He too refused – at first.

Many people – from opposition leaders to those within his own party – are calling for him to stand down before Thursday’s State of the Nation address. Whether or not this is possible in the timeframe is unclear, but there will no doubt be concerns about what he might say if he is given the podium.

Even if Mr Zuma survives the week, he may not survive the month: A no-confidence motion has been brought by the EFF, and will be heard in parliament on 22 February.

But every move the ANC makes will be made with an eye on the 2019 election – and a split within the party would make it more difficult to win support.

ANC chairman Gwede Mantashe said he wanted to ensure “stability in the country and stability in the ANC.”

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Source: BBC

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The Atlantic slave trade involved the forced transportation by slave traders of enslaved Africans, mainly from Africa to the Americas between the 16th to the 19th centuries.

The slaves were treated under the most inhumane conditions, and scars of the slave trade remain today with racial tension persisting in some western countries.

The Danish Foreign Minister, Anders Samuelson, making the pronouncement at the Flagstaff House, said Denmark was ashamed of its part in the slave trade.

“…I also take the opportunity to bring up a more distant shared history. We share a dark history of slave trade – shameful and unforgivable part of Danish history. Nothing can justify the exploitation of men, women and children in which Denmark took part.”

Anders Samuelson is part of the delegation of Queen of Denmark, Margrethe II, who is the first Danish Monarch to Visit Ghana.

Brief history

Denmark’s involvement in the then-Gold Coast begun on April 20, 1663, when it seized the Christiansborg Fort (Osu Castle) and Carlsborg Fort (Cape Castle), as it completed the annexation of Swedish Gold Coast settlements.

A number of trading stations and forts were built by the Danes during their time in Ghana, several of which are in ruins today.

The Osu Castle was noted as the base for Danish power in West Africa, and the centre for slave trade to the Danish West Indies.

In 1807, Denmark’s African business partners were overcome by the Akan resistance which led to the abandonment of all trading stations.

Denmark’s involvement in the then-Gold Coast ended following the Norwegian Declaration of Independence in 1814.

Denmark’s five Danish Gold Coast Territorial Settlements and forts of the Kingdom of Denmark were sold to the United Kingdom and were incorporated into the British Gold Coast in 1850.

Ghana and Denmark relations after slave trade 

Years after the dark days of slavery,  Denmark through its DANIDA Agency, has supported Ghana in many sectors of the economy.

However, Denmark has now decided to move from aid to trade, a vision that falls in line with President Akufo-Addo’s Ghana’s  beyond aid agenda.

Ghana and Denmark have enjoyed strong diplomatic and commercial ties over the years, and this visit by the Queen, joined by representatives of Danish companies and business organizations, is further aimed at strengthening same.

With Ghana’s graduation to a middle-income country and the prospects of sustainable economic growth, Denmark is gradually transitioning from development aid to trade cooperation, in line with the vision of the Government of Ghana.

Facts about Ghana and Danish exports:

•Ghana has 28 million inhabitants.

•Ghana was Denmark’s 84th largest export market in 2016, corresponding to DKK 272.7 million (around EUR 37 million) or 0.04% of total Danish exports.

•In the first seven months of 2017, Danish exports to Ghana rose to almost DKK 1 billion (EUR 134 million).

•The Danish International Development Assistance (Danida) has been active in Ghana since 1989, but the Danish development aid will now be phased out and cease entirely in 2020, as Ghana became a middle income country in 2011.

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By:  Delali Adogla-Bessa & Sammi Wiafe/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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