ACCRA, May 12 -- The monarch of the Asante kingdom Otumfuo Osei Tutu II on Monday called on Ghanaians and Africans to work together to pull themselves from the bootstraps .

Addressing a grand durbar to mark the 15th anniversary of his enthronement to the Asante stool in Kumasi, the Ashante regional capital, 270 km north of Ghana's capital, Otumfuo advised the youth of Ghana and Africa to stop trekking through pernicious deserts to flee home in search of greener pastures outside.

The Asante kingdom is a constitutionally protected, sub-nation state and traditional state within Ghana.

Speaking on the theme "Rekindling the spirit of Creativity, innovation and Enterprise Through Traditional Leadership," the Asante King counseled Africans to emulate China and other countries where their peoples stayed home to solve their challenges.

He said home was where they could find the glory, adding that however hard the challenges might be, Ghanaians and Africans in general had no alternative but to stay and pull themselves from the bootstraps.

"That was how other nations like China did," he said.

The Asantehene said he cried in his heart anytime he saw and heard thousands of able-bodied youth from Africa trudging through the deserts and pernicious seas in the efforts to escape poverty at home and seek greener pastures in other lands.

According to him, this waste of human talents must be a blot in the conscience of Africa, and Africans must act now to redeem their honor.

"There are no pastures greener than our green fields at home; and if we apply ourselves at home with the same diligence with which we strive in other lands, it will only be a matter of time before we fulfill our true destiny," he told the gathering.

Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama said Otumfuo Osei Tutu II had turned the relic of chieftaincy into relevance by waging a war against dehumanization, poverty and disease.

"What Otumfuo Nana Osei Tutu II brought with him to the throne of Asanteman 15 years ago was a clear vision on how to take the institution which had all but become a traditional relic and make it relevant once again," he said.

The majestic ceremony was attended by high profile dignitaries including former Ghanaian President Jerry Rawlings and John Agyekum Kufuor and former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, as well as other dignitaries from Africa and other parts of the world.