He and Michelle Obama flew Friday night to the capital city of Accra, where a long line of dignitaries met them at the airport and throngs were gathered in the streets nearby.

Across the capital Friday, banners bearing the word akwaaba - "welcome home" in one of Ghana's many local dialects - flapped gently in the tropical breezes.

Although the Obamas' visit did not last much longer than 24 hours, many Ghanaian expatriates returned to witness what they considered a historic occasion.

Kwaku Ohene-Frempong, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania who lives in Elkins Park, jetted to Accra last week to find it in the grip of Obamamania.

"The city is quite excited," Ohene-Frempong, 63, said in a telephone interview Friday. "There are big, big posters of the president and Mrs. Obama all over the city."

It's not the first time an American president has visited Ghana.

Bill Clinton and George W. Bush made brief tours while in office.

But since his father was born in Kenya, Obama was particularly awaited.

"People here are thrilled to see the first president of African descent," Ohene-Frempong said. "Ghana is quite proud that it was chosen for the president's homecoming visit."

Many Ghanaians, he said, view the visit as an acknowledgment of the country's 16 years of democratically elected government.

"This is a country that is at peace," Ohene-Frempong said. "It has gone through two changes of government without a major incident."

With their economy in tatters, many in the nation were hoping Obama would promise additional aid to Ghana and other West African nations.

Kobina Ofosu-Donkoh, pastor of the United Ghanaian Community Church in Melrose Park, estimated that 4,000 Ghanaians live in the Philadelphia area and said many members of his church had flown to Ghana for the occasion.

Obama's presidency, he said, is viewed as "a sign."

"For a black person to ascend to the throne of the most powerful nation in the world, we take great consolation in that," said Ofosu-Donkoh, 53, who also teaches courses on African religions at the University of Pennsylvania.

"It gives them hope," he said. "They realize the world is changing dramatically as far as skin-color barriers are concerned."

Nearly 500,000 people had been expected to attend a rally in Accra's Independence Square, before the threat of rain forced the event inside to a smaller venue, Ohene-Frempong said.

"I was hoping to try to meet the president," he said Friday, "but it's looking less and less likely."

The Obamas took a helicopter to Cape Coast, to tour a whitewashed fortress where slaves were kept in dungeons before making the passage to the Americas.

Ofosu-Donkoh called that tour "a very meaningful and emotional visit for the president and Mrs. Obama."

at 215-854-2796 or samwood@phillynews.com.