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VP Bawumia, Paul Kagame, William Ruto, Mackey Sali Named Among 100 Most Influential Africans
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The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has been named among the 100 most influential people in the African continent.
The exclusive list of transformational African leaders, was drawn by revered Pan African publication, the New African Magazine, which seeks to recognise, acknowledge and honour a rare breed of transformational African leaders, whose works are truly transforming lives and making telling impacts on their respective countries and the African continent.
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia was selected in the category of influential LEADERS, along with Presidents Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Mackey Sall of Senegal and William Ruto of Kenya. Others are African Development Bank (AfDB) President Akinwumi Adesina, Afriexim Bank President Professor Benedict Oramah, among others.
Dr. Bawumia was recognized for his relentless efforts at spearheading Ghana’s digitization as a core economic strategy to solve socio-economic problems.
GLOWING TRIBUTE
Naming Dr. Bawumia as one of Africa’s most influential leaders, the publication eulogised the Vice President for his transformational leadership, noting that his reforms are setting “unique precedents on the African continent.”
‘The Oxford-trained economist, former Deputy Governor of Ghana’s Central Bank and Vice President of the Rephblic of Ghana since 2017, Dr. MahamuduBawumia is spearheading Ghana’s digitisation as a core economic strategy to solve socio-economic problems, formalise and build a more inclusive economy, deal with corruption and to provide social services more effectively,” wrote the magazine.
“His reforms are setting a unique precedent on the continent. His digitisation agenda has resulted in the implementation and adoption of a National Identification System, a Digital Property Addressing System and a Mobile Money Interoperability System. This is enabling a new set of opportunities for the consumer including mobile wallets and greater financial inclusion.”
“Bawumia sees technology as the key to transforming the economy and delivering essential services,” the publication added.
Dr. Bawumia was also commended by the magazine for initiating Ghana’s recent oil for gold barter initiative, which seeks to pay for imported oil with Ghana’s gold, rather paying with its reserved US Dollars – a smart move to curb the depreciation of the Cedi, as well as control the rising cost of fuel in the country.
IMPACT OF DR. BAWUMIA’S DIGITISATION INITIATIVES
With the transformational policies Dr. Bawumia has championed, Ghana has achieved the following: successfully issued digital national identity cards to Ghanaian nationals and residents, become the first African country to adopt a national digital property address system, become the first African country to implement mobile money interoperability between mobile money accounts and bank accounts, been ranked number one in terms of access to financial inclusion in Africa, become the first country in Africa to implement a universal QR Code payment system and Ghana has also become the first country in the world where banks have issued their own mobile money wallets known as GhanaPay.
Through his digitisation initiatives, Ghana has also become the world’s largest provider of medical delivery services using Zipline drones to deliver medical supplies to remote parts of the country in real time.
Ghana has also become the first country in Africa to implement a national scale E-Pharmacy digital platform, and the country has also figitized the provision of government services using a common digital portal (Ghana.gov), as well as a common digital platform for property taxation in Ghana – all contributing immensely to revenue mobilization.
New Africa Magazine’s latest honour, adds to the growing list of international acknowledgement of Dr Bawumia, for his starring role in Ghana’s acclaimed digitisation drive.
Recently, the UNDP, through its country rep, Angela Rusigi, described Dr. Bawumia as a “champion of digitisation”, adding that his efforts have contributed to ‘inclusive and accelerated development.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has strongly criticised the decision of the Court of Appeal to acquit and discharge former Chief Executive Officer of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC), Sedinam Christine Tamakloe Attionu.
In a statement issued on July 30, 2026, the party described the ruling as a “travesty of justice” and claimed it was politically motivated.
The Court of Appeal on Thursday overturned her conviction and 10-year prison sentence, which had been imposed by the High Court in April 2024 on charges including stealing, causing financial loss to the state, money laundering and breaches of the Public Procurement Act.
According to the NPP, the former MASLOC boss was tried for five years and convicted after the High Court examined evidence relating to alleged financial irregularities during her tenure between 2013 and 2016.
The party noted that she left Ghana while the trial was ongoing and was later extradited from the United States, arriving in Ghana on June 9, 2026.
The NPP argued that the trial court had found that her actions caused a loss of nearly GH¢90 million to the state and that the evidence against her was substantial.
It questioned why the conviction was overturned barely seven weeks after her return to Ghana.
The party further accused the Attorney-General of using state institutions to protect people connected to the governing party.
It claimed that several cases involving persons affiliated with the government had been discontinued since January 2025 and that the acquittal of Madam Tamakloe Attionu was part of that pattern.
The NPP linked the decision to the ongoing case involving its Ashanti Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi.
It called for his immediate acquittal and discharge, arguing that his conviction was also politically motivated.
The party demanded that the Attorney-General publish details of all cases involving persons linked to the governing party that have been withdrawn, discontinued or otherwise terminated since January 2025, including the reasons for those decisions.
It called on the Judicial Council and the leadership of the Judiciary to take steps to restore public confidence in the justice system.
The NPP said it would pursue all lawful avenues, including a possible review at the Supreme Court where applicable, to ensure accountability in cases involving public funds.
The party maintained that the fight against corruption must not be selective and that public resources belong to all Ghanaians.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Former Attorney-General Godfred Yeboah Dame has disagreed with the Court of Appeal’s decision to acquit former MASLOC Chief Executive Officer Sedina Tamakloe Attionu, insisting that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Mr Dame made the remarks after the Court of Appeal unanimously overturned her conviction and 10-year prison sentence.
He maintained that the evidence presented by the prosecution during the trial was credible and sufficient to support the conviction.
According to him, Ms Tamakloe absconded after she had been confronted with evidence led by the prosecution.
Mr Dame questioned the basis for the acquittal and suggested that the current Attorney-General should explain what led to the Court of Appeal’s decision.
He wondered whether the appeal had been strongly opposed by the state.
When asked whether he would advise the Attorney-General to challenge the ruling, Mr Dame answered in the affirmative.
“Oh, definitely,” he stated.
The former Attorney-General spoke about the ongoing criminal case involving former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.
He indicated that an application for stay of proceedings filed at the High Court had been dismissed, and that a fresh application had been filed at the Court of Appeal.
Mr Dame argued that the charge sheet in the case was defective and that the appellate court should determine the issue before the trial proceeds.
He further criticised the decision to hear the case during the legal vacation, describing it as an “unjustified haste” and saying such trials had not been conducted during vacation periods in the past.
Mr Dame said his legal team would formally protest the directive allowing the case to proceed during the vacation.
The Court of Appeal’s ruling in favour of Ms Tamakloe has become a major legal and political issue, with the Attorney-General’s Department already announcing plans to appeal the decision at the Supreme Court.
By: Jacob Aggrey
