The good, the bad and the ugly statues of famous people in Africa

But not all these statues turn out to be a fair representation of the person or concept they were made to symbolize.

We look at some of the magnificent and not so good statues standing on the African soil.

African Renaissance Monument

At 160 feet tall, the bronze African Renaissance Monument is over one-and-a-half times the height of the Statue of Liberty. It depicts a man with a bare, ripped torso holding an infant aloft in one arm and guiding a woman with the other. The infant points ahead to indicate the glorious future, while the woman extends her arm behind to acknowledge the troubled past. Her hair is swept back by the wind, as are her scant, gossamer-like garments.

Nkrumah's statue in Addis Ababa

The statue was unveiled by Ghana's former President, the late John Evans Atta Mills. The statute is situated in front of the new African Union (AU) building in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The statute is cast in bronze and stands at 3.5 metres.

The 'Forward Ever' statue of Ghana's first President

There is another magnificent statue at the Kwame Nkrumah mausoleum in Accra.

Nelson Mandela

The statue was commissioned in July 2002 and completed in February 2004. It was unveiled in the square on March 31, 2004. It was sculpted by Kobus Hattingh and Jacob Maponyane.

The statue was erected in conjunction with the 10th anniversary of South Africa's first democratic elections.

Fela Anikulapo Kuti statue

This Liberation Statue in honour of music legend and Afrobeat pioneer Fela Anikulapo Kuti who died on August 2, 1997, at the age of 58.

The Statue was unveiled at the popular Allen Roundabout in Ikeja, Lagos on Fela’s 79th birthday as part of activities marking the 20th anniversary of his demise.

Gandhi's monument at the University of Ghana

A controversial statue of Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi was erected at the University of Ghana campus in Accra by Pranab Mukherjee, the president of India, as a symbol of close ties between the two countries.

Mohamed Abdel Wahab banned statue

The statue of late musician Mohamed Abdel Wahab in Egypt was described as deformed for its gold and brown painting by the students of the Giza Technical Secondary School for Girls who built it.

Cecil Rhodes

South Africa’s University of Cape Town protested for months against a statue of 19th Century British colonialist Cecil Rhodes. The protesters said it had “great symbolic power” which glorified someone “who exploited black labour and stole land from indigenous people”.

General Philippe

The statue of French colonial hero General Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque erected in Douala since the colonial era was beheaded on two occasions by activist Andre Blaise Essama.

Essien and Gyan

A statue in honour of two of Ghana’s football icons, Asamoah Gyan and Michael Essien has been the subject of ridicule with critics saying the artworks have no resemblance to the real persons.

The Ghanaian sculptor behind the two statutes, Dominic Ebo Bismarck, remains unfazed amidst the uproar.

“Artwork must be criticized and I’m ever ready to accept criticisms. I am ok with it as most are coming from a layman’s point of view.”