Obama "proud" to visit Africa again

As former US President Barack Obama prepares to return to South Africa – and on the continent – for the first time since his departure, prior to Nelson Mandela's annual conference, he will pay tribute to some of best African writers. 19659002] In honor of the centenary of former President Nelson Mandela next week, the annual conference will focus on "Renewing Mandela's Legacy and Promoting Active Citizenship in a Changing World".

Before the conference, Obama wrote on his Facebook page He was proud to have visited sub-Saharan Africa more often than any other president in office before him.

He praised the continent for its "wonderful diversity, flourishing culture, and remarkable stories."

"In South Africa, the Obama Foundation will convene 200 extraordinary young leaders from across the continent and I will deliver a speech on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Nelson Mandela, "he writes.

" Kenya, of course, is the ancestor of Obama I have visited for the first time when I was twenty years old and I was deeply influenced by my experiences – a trip that I talked about in my first book, Dreams of my father. "

Obama said that Over the years, it was inspired by the extraordinary literary tradition of Africa.

The Obama titles included in his recommendations were The Falls of 39; Autumn of Chinua Achebe, The Wheat Grains of Ngugi wa Thiong & # 39; o, Americanah of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, The Return by Hisham Matar, and The world as it is by Ben Rhodes

And, of course, the long march to freedom [1949] 59016] by Nelson Mandela "Mandela's life was one of the epics of the 20th century: this definitive memoir traces the arc of his life from a small village to his revolutionary years. , to his long incarceration, and finally to his ascent to unification. President, leader and global icon, "wrote Obama

" Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the story – and then go out and change it. "