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Honouring young achievers: meet some women on philanthropic mission
All is set for the announcement of the top ‘Forty under 40 Achievers’ for year 2022, later today at Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City in Accra.
The award would be conferred on nominated young people with the highest public votes in each of the categories. A fortnight ago, the focus was on some of the candidates selected randomly from all 40 categories.
This week, the spotlight is on the women competing in the Philanthropy and Charity Category, as provided by the organisers. There is more to follow after we know who wins what at the main event.
Ms Henritta Somuah
Popularly known as Nhyiraba Herty, she is the Founder of Touching Lives Outreach International, a registered entity which has been operating for over 10 years. She holds Higher National Diploma (HND) in Accounting from Takoradi Technical University (TTU).
Henritta reaches out to orphans, women and girls, street children and underprivileged persons. Through her educational and vocational training projects, many girls and vulnerable youth have acquired vocational skills while others have also established small scale businesses to support themselves and their families.
Some children she had helped rescue from the streets had been enrolled in her charity school called Touching Lives Educational Complex which provides free tuition, while supporting some of the beneficiaries to further their education to the secondary and tertiary levels.
The initiative had earned her recognition as she has secured land to construct a seven-unit classroom block, vocational training centre for women and girls, a computer lab, and other facilities at Kwei, a remote community in the Western Region of Ghana.
Naa Kuorkor Mayne-Eghan
She holds a degree in Sociology and Economics from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Finance from Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).
She is committed to supporting mothers of sick and premature babies by donating hospital equipment and providing for newborns and their mothers.
She leads ‘The Jay Foundation’ which, in July 2020, built and furnished a new Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and Mothers’ Shed at the Keta Municipal Hospital. It again donated about GhC 300,000 to NICUs in some hospitals and health facilities across the nation since 2019, mainly to support preterm and sick infants; their mothers and the hospitals.
Some of the hospitals include the Tema General Hospital, Nsawam Government Hospital, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Shai Osudoku Hospital, Keta Municipal Hospital, Banda District Clinic, Bamboi Polyclinic, Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, and Wenchi Methodist Hospital.
In spite of challenges, she and her team continue to lessen the burden on mothers, new borns and facilities they reach out to, across the country.
Ms Esther Tibila
She is an enthusiastic social entrepreneur who founded the Disability Not Inability (DNI) Foundation with a focus on helping people with various forms of physical disabilities, especially children, in the areas of education, health, and entrepreneurship. She is passionate about social inclusion and development.
She holds Master of Arts (MA) in Ports and Shipping Administration in addition to a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Logistics Management from the Regional Maritime University.
Esther believes “everybody has untapped potentials that may never be realised unless they receive the proper instruction, nurturing, and guidance.”
She started the DNI Foundation at age 25 and had since supported over 300 people with disabilities and their families through a number of activities. She has collaborated with organisations such as the Mephibosheth Training Centre at Ankamu near Apam, the Gbi Special School at Hohoe, the Physically Challenged Action Foundation at Offinso, the Gbeogo School for the Deaf at Tongo, the St. Theresah Vocational Training Centre for the Physically Challenged, Abor, and the Good Samaritan Home for Persons with Intellectual Disability at Adidome.
Though she may not be able to reach out to everyone, she has pledged to “influence positively and help transform the lives of those she has come in contact with.”
Through personal and crowd-funding projects, DNI Foundation has been supporting the physically challenged to return to school, acquire a trade, or receive medical treatment.
Ms Faith Aku Senyo
Senyo
Faith is a professional teacher. She holds a Diploma in Basic Education, Bachelor of Education in Home Economics and a Masters in Leadership and Administration.
Her drive to help others was stoked up when she saw the countless hardships that her students and their parents had to endure in order to pursue a better life. Mrs. Senyo has embraced the call to serve with open arms, touched many lives in a positive way, and won the hearts of many more people, including corporate organisations.
She is the proud founder of ‘The Rebranded Lady’, a legally recognised non-governmental organisation dedicated to the overall well-being of women, children, and economically disadvantaged members of society.
The organisation is certain that women empowerment and motivation leads to better homes and a thriving nation, and has, therefore, initiated a number of projects targeted at women and the underprivileged.
Some of the projects include the “Mother of Many Missions,” programme which provides 30 disadvantaged children with food, clothing, and school supplies. The organisation again offers period kits to girls through its “PinkPlate Charity Bundle” initiative.
The professor who spends his days exploring the intricacies of African languages found himself at the centre of a different kind of lesson on Friday, October 2, 2026. 
This time, there were no lecture notes, academic arguments or university classrooms. Instead, there was the weight of tradition, the rhythm of a community celebration and the solemnity of an oath at a royal palace.
Professor Ọbádélé Kambon, a full Professor of African Linguistics at the University of Ghana, was enstooled as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene of Akuapem Mampong in the Eastern Region in a ceremony that brought academia and traditional authority together.
For the professor, the occasion was more than a new title. It was a moment that connected his academic interests in African languages and indigenous knowledge with the living traditions of an Akan community.
The day’s events unfolded through a series of customary observances. Kambon was first taken to the compounds of the Ɔkyeamehene and Gyasehene, where the preparations for his installation continued.
Then came the application of hyire, the white kaolin powder associated with traditional rites.
With the customary proceedings underway, the new chief was lifted onto the shoulders of celebrants and carried along the main thoroughfare of Akuapem Mampong.
The procession transformed the streets into a public stage for a ceremony rooted in the community’s traditional institutions.
There was something striking about the image, a university professor, accustomed to the measured language of academic discourse, being carried through the town in a display of traditional recognition.
Yet the celebration was not complete with the procession.
A ram was sacrificed at the Mamponghene’s compound before Kambon was taken to the palace, to swear the oath associated with his new offices.
The ceremony brought him formally into his roles as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene.
Beyond the colourful proceedings, the titles themselves carry layers of historical meaning.
Kambon in his research explores the historical connections between Apagya and Akan political and military organisation.
Accounts cited in his work linked Apagya to an asafo, or military company, while historical writing traces an Apagya stool in Asante to the reign of Opoku Ware I in the eighteenth century.
These historical associations offer a glimpse into the institutions that have shaped Akan society over generations, although they do not automatically define the precise responsibilities of the office in Akuapem Mampong.
Kambon’s own professional life reflects a similar interest in preserving and examining African knowledge.
His work encompasses Akan language structure, naming practices across the Black world, proverbs and indigenous intellectual traditions.
Through Abibitumi, the platform he founded, he also promotes language learning, scholarship and cultural engagement.
But tradition was only one part of the story that day.
When the formal ceremony gave way to a reception, the occasion expanded into a celebration of three milestones: Kambon’s enstoolment, his promotion to full professor and his daughter Ama’s admission to the University of Ghana.
The gathering therefore carried a personal significance that went beyond the honours bestowed on one man. 
It celebrated professional advancement, the continuation of family aspirations and a connection to cultural heritage.
For a father, seeing a daughter gain admission to the same university where he holds a distinguished academic position offered another reason to celebrate.
For the professor, the moment placed family achievement alongside his own professional and traditional milestones.
Kambon had already established a place in the traditional life of Akuapem Mampɔn through an earlier installation as Banmuhene Kyidɔmhene, recorded in 2017.
His latest enstoolment adds another chapter to that relationship.
In Akuapem Mampɔn, the day brought together the university, the palace and the family table in one celebration. And for Kambon, the journey from the lecture room to the traditional procession showed how scholarship, cultural responsibility and family achievement could converge in a single memorable occasion.
By Enoch Ntiamoah Siaw
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Intercity STC Coaches Limited has interdicted a driver captured in a viral video allegedly hitting a Sprinter bus during an overtaking manoeuvre at Pokuase before driving away from the scene.
In a public notice, the company described the driver’s conduct as unacceptable, stressing that it did not reflect the safety standards and professionalism it upholds.
Management said it had commenced an immediate investigation into the incident and identified the driver, who has been interdicted pending the outcome of the disciplinary process.
The company added that it was awaiting an official report from the Pokuase Police Command to help establish the facts surrounding the incident.
STC reaffirmed its commitment to passenger safety and responsible road use, while thanking members of the public for bringing the incident to its attention.
Management assured the public that appropriate action would be taken following the investigation.
By: Jacob Aggrey
