President John Dramani Mahama on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, named 13 people he wants to fill positions in his government as deputy ministers.
This latest nomination brings the president close to his target of appointing 60 ministers and deputy ministers, having already nominated 42 ministers.
The names of the 13 deputy minister-designates have been submitted to the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, for vetting and approval.
The men and women who made the list have diverse backgrounds, with some being leading figures of the ruling National Democratic Congress and others ‘newcomers’ in the political space.
Below are profiles of Mahama’s deputy minister nominees.
1. Deputy Minister of Finance-designate – Thomas Nyarko Ampem
Thomas Nyarko Ampem is the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Asuogyaman Constituency in the Eastern Region. He has represented the constituency since 2016.
He was born on Tuesday, February 14, 1978, and hails from Anum in the Eastern Region.
Nyarko Ampem previously served as a District Chief Executive and the Financial Director of the Inter-Ministerial Co-ordinating Committee on Decentralisation.
He holds an MSc in Finance from Virginia Commonwealth University, U.S.A.; and a Teacher’s Certificate A from Peki Training College. He also attended the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, where he obtained a B.A. in Social Sciences.
2. Deputy Minister of the Interior-designate – Ebenezer Okletey Terlabi
Ebenezer Okletey Terlabi is the Member of Parliament for the Lower Manya Krobo Constituency in the Eastern Region. He has represented the people of Lower Manya in Parliament since 2012.
He previously served as a Deputy Eastern Regional Minister and a Deputy Minister of Defence. Before venturing into politics, the minister-designate was a lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). He has also worked as a research officer at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
Okletey Terlabi, who hails from Odumase Krobo, was born on September 3, 1963. He is a Christian
He obtained an MPhil in Biochemistry from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology as well as a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Ghana.
3. Deputy Minister of Defence-designate – Ernest Brogya Genfi
Brogya Genfi is a former Ashanti Regional Youth Organizer of the NDC. He was the NDC parliamentary candidate for the Suame Constituency in the Ashanti Region.
Brogya Genfi is a marketing consultant with an interest in political marketing and public administration. He is an alumnus of the United States of America International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP).
He has previously worked with the National Trust Holding Company (NTHC) and the Information Services Department (ISD). He once worked as the Public Relations Officer for the Ashanti Regional Coordinating Council.
He holds a Master of Arts degree in Strategic Marketing from the University of Ghana, Legon, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Public Administration from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration. He also holds a Graduate Diploma in Business Studies from the Institute of Commercial Studies, United Kingdom, and is a Graduate Member of the Chartered Institute of Administrators and Management Consultants, Ghana.
4. Deputy Minister of Education-designate – Dr Clement Abas Apaak
Dr Clement Abas Apaak is the Member of Parliament for the Builsa South Constituency in the Upper East Region, a constituency he has represented since 2020.
He hails from Doninga in the Upper East Region and was born on June 11, 1970. The deputy minister-designate is a Christian.
He is currently a deputy-ranking member of Parliament’s Education Committee. He also serves on the Public Accounts Committee.
Dr Apaak holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Archaeology and History from the University of Ghana; a PhD in Archaeology from Simon Fraser University (SFU), Canada; an MPhil in Archaeology from the University of Bergen, Norway; and an International Certificate in African Archaeology from the University of Brussels.
5. Deputy Minister of Energy and Green Transition-designate – Richard Gyan-Mensah
Richard Gyan-Mensah is the Member of Parliament for Gomoa Assin. He represented the constituency in the 8th Parliament.
Richard Gyan-Mensah was the Vice Chair of the Budget Committee of Parliament and a member of the Youth and Sports Committee, the Security and Intelligence Committee, and the Environment, Science, and Technology Committee in the 8th Parliament.
He holds an MSc in Accounting and Finance, a Bachelor of Education degree in Psychology, as well as advanced certificates from Knowledge Tree International, Dubai; the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA); and Knutsford University College, Accra.
Before becoming a Member of Parliament, Richard Gyan-Mensah was the General Manager for Desert Oil Limited. He also served as the Head of Finance and Planning at Petrosol Ghana Limited, Assistant Accounts Manager at Union Oil Ghana Limited, and Accountant at Trust Hands Auto Limited.
Gyan-Mensah is a Christian and hails from Gomoa Assin Brofoyedur. He was born on Sunday, June 20, 1982.
6. Deputy Minister of Roads and Highways-designate – Alhassan Sayibu Suhuyini
Alhassan Sayibu Suhuyini has been the Member of Parliament for Tamale North since 2016. He was born on September 12, 1979, and is a Muslim.
In 2013, he was appointed by President John Dramani Mahama as a board member of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA). He has also served as the Communications Manager for the National Hajj Board.
He is a broadcast journalist who worked at Radio Gold in Accra, where he hosted two of the station’s flagship programs: the morning show “Gold Power Drive” and the weekend socio-economic and political current affairs program “Alhaji and Alhaji Talk Show.” Before moving to Radio Gold, he worked as a radio presenter at Diamond FM in Tamale and later at Citi FM and Metro TV in Accra.
Suhuyini is a trained teacher. He holds a BSc in Public Administration and an MSc in Development Management from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).
7. Deputy Minister of Justice and Attorney General – Justice Srem-Sai
Dr. Srem-Sai is currently a senior lecturer at the University of Ghana School of Law, Legon, where he teaches Constitutional Law, Administrative Law, Human Rights Law, and Criminal Law. Prior to joining the University of Ghana, he taught Constitutional Law, International Human Rights Law, and Commercial Law at other institutions, including the University of Leeds School of Law in the UK and the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) Law School in Accra.
Dr. Srem-Sai has built a reputation as a passionate constitutional rights enforcement lawyer and civil rights advocate. He has worked with notable human rights organizations, including the Initiative for Strategic Litigation in Africa (ISLA), the Defend-Defenders Project, Deutsche Gesellschaft Für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ), the Institute of Law & Public Affairs (ILPA), and the International Senior Lawyers Project (ISLP), to help secure justice for victims of police brutality and other human rights abuses.
He was called to the Ghana Bar in 2011. He obtained his undergraduate degrees from the University of Ghana and a Qualifying Certificate in Law from the Ghana School of Law. He holds postgraduate law degrees from the Cardiff School of Law & Politics, Harvard Law School, and the University of Leeds School of Law. His academic awards include the Open Society Foundations Scholarship grant (2012), the Harvard Law School Scholarship award (2013), the Emory Law School Vulnerability and the Human Condition Initiative award (2018), and the Leeds Law PGR Overall Outstanding Thesis of the Year award (2021).
8. Deputy Minister of Lands and Natural Resources – Yusif Sulemana
Yusif Sulemana is the Member of Parliament for the Bole Bamboi Constituency in the Savannah Region. He has represented the constituency since 2021.
He was born on July 29, 1972, and is a Muslim.
He holds a Certificate in Public and Private Partnership from the Institute of Public and Private Partnership, a post-secondary certificate from Tamale Training College, a Certificate in Corporate Governance from the Institute of Directors, a Certificate in Procurement, and a Certificate in Monitoring and Evaluation from GIMPA. He also holds a BSc and an MBA from the University of Ghana.
Yusif Sulemana was the Relationship Manager at Unibank from 2004 to 2010 and the Project Manager at Exim Bank from 2010 to 2016.
9. Deputy Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs – Rita Naa Odoley Sowah
Rita Naa Odoley Sowah is the Member of Parliament for the Dadekotopon Constituency in the Greater Accra Region. She also represented the constituency in the 8th Parliament.
Odoley Sowah hails from La and was born on Tuesday, July 2, 1968. She is a Christian.
She previously served as the Municipal Chief Executive of the La Dadekotopon Municipal Assembly and as a secretary at the Premix Secretariat of the Fisheries Commission of Ghana.
10. Deputy Minister of Works, Housing and Water Resources – Gizella Tettey-Agbotui
Gizella Tettey-Agbotui is the Member of Parliament for the Awutu Senya West Constituency in the Central Region, which she has represented since 2021.
Tettey-Agbotui, a Christian, was born on Monday, November 30, 1970. She is a native of Awutu Obrachire.
She holds a BSc in Design and a Postgraduate Diploma from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. She also holds an MBA from the University of Ghana Business School and an AGIA from the Ghana Institute of Architects.
Before entering politics, she was the Chief Executive Officer of Zella Architects.
11. Deputy Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts – Yussif Issaka Jajah
Yussif Issaka Jajah is the Member of Parliament for the Ayawaso North Constituency. He has represented the constituency in the 7th and 8th Parliaments of the 4th Republic.
A native of Bole, he is a Muslim and was born on Sunday, October 21, 1979.
He holds an MSc in Energy Economics from GIMPA, an MPhil in Development Finance from GIMPA, an MBA in International Oil and Gas Management from the University of Dundee, Scotland, and a BSc in Accounting from the University of Professional Studies.
He previously worked as a Senior Research Officer at the Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee on Decentralization.
12. Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture – John Kofi Setor Dumelo
John Kofi Setor Dumelo is the Member of Parliament for the Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency in the Greater Accra Region.
He is a Christian and was born on February 3, 1984.
John Dumelo, a farmer, entrepreneur, and actor, holds a degree in Civil Engineering from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. He also holds a BSc in Public Administration from GIMPA.
Deputy Minister of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry – Sampson Ahi
Sampson Ahi is the Member of Parliament for the Bodi Constituency in the Western Region. He has represented the constituency in multiple parliaments from the 4th to the current 9th Parliament.
He was born on September 14, 1976, and hails from Sefwi Bodi, a town in the Western Region of Ghana.
He served as Deputy Minister of Works and Housing and as a Minister of State in the previous Mahama government.
He holds a BA from the University of Ghana, an LLB, and a Master’s degree from GIMPA.
Before entering politics, he was the Sector Manager at Armajaro Ghana Limited from 2003 to 2004.
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