Prez Akufo-Addo presents credentials to 21 envoys

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has presented letters of credence to 21 appointed envoys, urging them to champion the Government of Ghana’s post-COVID-19 recovery agenda.

The 15 Ambassadors and six High Commissioners comprise political appointees and careers diplomats.

They are Papa Owusu-Ankomah, High Commissioner to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Hajia Alima Mahama, Ambassador to the United States of America; Ms. Khadija Iddrisu, High Commissioner to the Republic of Zambia; Mr. Kwabena Okubi-Appiah, Ambassador to the Republic of Liberia; Oheneba Dr. Lesley Akyaa Opoku-Ware, Ambassador to the Russian Federation; Lieutenant General Obed Boamah Akwa (Rtd), Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt; Mr. Charles Asuako Owiredu, High Commissioner to the Republic of South Africa; and Mr. Francis Danti Kotia, Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

The others are Mrs. Francisca Ashietey-Odunton, Ambassador to the Republic of Turkey; Alhaji Ahmed Ramadan, Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates; Mr. Napoleon Abdulai, Ambassador to the Republic of Mali; Mrs. Sylvia Naa Adaawa Annoh, Ambassador to the Kingdom of Denmark; Madam Barbara Akuorkor Benisa, High Commissioner to the Republic of Malta; Mr. Yakubu Alhassan, High Commissioner to the Republic of Namibia; and Mr. Samuel Yaw Nsiah, Ambassador to the Republic of Cuba.

The rest are Madam Christine Churcher, Ambassador to the Republic of Benin; Mr. Damptey Bediako Asare, High Commissioner to the Republic of Kenya; Alhaji Mohammad Habibu Tijani, Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Mrs. Charis Obestebi-Lamptey-Zwennes, Ambassador to the Republic of Korea; Mr. Michael Ofori-Atta, Ambassador-at-Large, and Mr. Emmanuel Kwame Asiedu Antwi, Ambassador In Situ (Chief of Protocol).

At a short ceremony at the Jubilee House, Accra, where the President administered the Oaths of Office, Allegiance and Secrecy to the envoys, he asked them to prioritise Ghana's post-COVID-19 recovery agenda at their duty post.

He said their selection and appointment came at a time when the entire world was reeling from and trying to recover from the devastation of the Coronavirus pandemic.

President Akufo-Addo stressed that the recovery of the nation should be the burden of all members of government, including the Ambassadors and High Commissioners.

He told them that his administration’s unprecedented flagship initiative, the Ghc100 billion post-COVID-19 Ghana CARES Obaatanpa Programme geared to stabilise, revitalise and transform Ghana’s economy, must be the pivot around which they engaged the rest of the world.

"Ambassadors and High Commissioners, you have to familiarise yourselves with these objectives, which are at the core of my second term mandate as they represent our surest way out of the pandemic, and which will thrust Ghana back to the path of progress and prosperity," he stated.

“Each one of you must help and contribute to the success of this programme by facilitating as much foreign investment into the country as you can," the President entreated the envoys.

The High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Papa Owusu-Ankomah, on behalf of his colleagues, pledged that they would work hard to justify the confidence reposed in them.

He said they would capitalize on their experiences, and work earnestly to help the recovery process of the country from the impact of COVID-19, and pledged to find innovative ways to promote goods made in Ghana.