Nana Akufo-Addo

His Excellency
Nana Akufo-Addo
Akufo-Addo in 2024
8th President of Ghana
Incumbent
Assumed office
7 January 2017
Vice PresidentMahamudu Bawumia
Preceded byJohn Mahama
35th Chair of the Economic Community of West African States
In office
2 June 2020 – 3 July 2022
Preceded byMahamadou Issoufou
Succeeded byUmaro Sissoco Embaló
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
1 April 2003 – 1 July 2007
PresidentJohn Kufuor
Preceded byHackman Owusu-Agyeman
Succeeded byAkwasi Osei-Adjei
Attorney General of Ghana
In office
7 January 2001 – 1 April 2003
PresidentJohn Kufuor
Preceded byObed Asamoah
Succeeded byPapa Owusu-Ankomah
Member of Parliament
for Akim Abuakwa South
In office
7 January 2005 – 6 January 2009
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded bySamuel Atta Akyea
Member of Parliament
for Abuakwa
In office
7 January 1997 – 6 January 2005
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byConstituency abolished
Personal details
Born
William Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo

(1944-03-29) 29 March 1944 (age 80)
Accra, Gold Coast (now Ghana)
Political partyNew Patriotic Party
Spouses
Remi Fani-Kayode
​
(divorced)​
Eleanor Nkansah-Gyamenah
​
​
(deceased)​
​
​
(m. 1997)​
Children5
Parents
ResidenceJubilee House
Education
WebsiteCampaign website

Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo (/æˈkʊfoʊ ɑːˈdoʊ/ ⓘ a-KUUF-oh ah-DOH;[1] born 29 March 1944) is a Ghanaian politician who has served as the president of Ghana since 2017.[2][3][4][5] He previously served as Attorney General from 2001 to 2003 and as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2003 to 2007 under the administration of then-president John Kufuor.[6]

Akufo-Addo first ran for president in the year 2008 and again in 2012, both times as the presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). He lost on both occasions to National Democratic Congress' candidates: John Evans Atta Mills in 2008 and John Dramani Mahama in 2012. After the 2012 general elections, he refused to concede and proceeded to court to challenge the electoral results, but the Supreme Court of Ghana affirmed Mahama's victory.[7]

He was chosen as the presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party for a third time for the 2016 general elections, and this time he defeated incumbent John Dramani Mahama in the first round (winning with 53.85% of the votes), which marked the first time in a Ghanaian presidential election that an opposition candidate won a majority outright in the first round.[8] It was also the first time that an opposition candidate had unseated an incumbent president. He again secured an outright majority in the first round of the 2020 general elections (winning with 51.59% of the vote), defeating Mahama for a second time.[9][10][11]

Akufo-Addo's government initially drew broad popularity from the Ghanaian public, promoting a nationalistic 'Ghana beyond aid' agenda.[12] The latter part of his tenure has however been marred by the worst financial crises in a generation, with inflation reaching up to 40% in both 2022 and 2023.[13][14][15] His government has attributed this to the Russo-Ukrainian War and the COVID-19 pandemic, but many observers point to mismanagement of public funds.[16][17][18]

  1. ^ "OL Elected President of Ghana". lancingcollege united kingdom. 22 December 2016. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  2. ^ "Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Biography". ghanaweb. Archived from the original on 14 October 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
  3. ^ "COVID-19: Nana Addo joins world leaders in signing People's Vaccine". Citinewsroom - Comprehensive News in Ghana. 16 May 2020. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  4. ^ Arhinful, Ernest (16 May 2021). "Akufo-Addo to address Ghanaians on COVID-19 fight tonight". Citinewsroom - Comprehensive News in Ghana. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
  5. ^ Osei Boakye, Evans (7 January 2017). "Nana Akufo Addo Is the New President for Ghana – Here's His Inauguration Speech". GhanaStar. Archived from the original on 8 January 2017. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  6. ^ "Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo Profile". GhanaWeb. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
  7. ^ "Nana Akufo-Addo". akufoaddo2012. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
  8. ^ "World Digest: Dec. 9. 2016: Ghana president concedes to opposition leader". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 11 December 2016. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
  9. ^ Frimpong, Enoch Darfah (9 December 2020). "Akufo-Addo elected president of Ghana for second term with 51.59 percent of valid votes cast". Graphic Online. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  10. ^ Dontoh, Ekow; Dzawu, Moses Mozart (8 December 2020). "Ghana's President Akufo-Addo Wins Second Term by Slim Margin". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  11. ^ "President Akufo-Addo Sworn in for a Second Term". theaccratimes. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  12. ^ Lu, Joanne (12 December 2017). "Latest Viral Video: Ghana's Prez Throws Shade At Foreign Aid". NPR. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  13. ^ "How Ghana's economy became a cautionary tale for Africa". Financial Times. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
  14. ^ Mensah, Kent (31 December 2022). "How Ghana, Africa's rising star, ended up in economic turmoil". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  15. ^ "Ghana: Country battles economic crisis as inflation hits 40%". France 24. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  16. ^ "Russia-Ukraine conflict Ghana's President says it is affecting Africa's socio-economic gains". SABC. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  17. ^ "Ghana: Impacts of the Ukraine and global crises on poverty and food security". GLOBAL CRISIS COUNTRY BRIEF. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  18. ^ Donkor, Audrey (26 June 2023). "How Campaign Promises Crashed Ghana's Economy". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 30 September 2023.