Profile of Foreign Affairs Minister nominee Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa

The Member of Parliament (MP) for North Tongu Constituency, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has been nominated for the position of Foreign Affairs Minister.

President John Dramani Mahama made the nomination in his Third Batch of Ministerial appointments as he continues to put things in place to set up his government.

Here is a profile of the nominee, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa is a four-term Ghanaian legislator representing the good people of North Tongu in the Volta Region.

Hon. Okudzeto Ablakwa has had an illustrious public service career spanning some two decades. He has a reputation for being a strong advocate for ethical, transparent and transformational leadership. For nearly eight years, between 2017 and 2024, he served as Ranking Member of the select committee on Foreign Affairs. He rose to become the first Chairman of the reformed Assurances Committee. Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa is currently the Chairman of President John Mahama's flagship anti-corruption drive, Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL).

In 2009, he was appointed Deputy Minister for Information by President John Evans Atta Mills of blessed memory.

By that appointment, he made history as the youngest Deputy Minister of Ghana's Fourth Republic. His Excellency John Dramani Mahama also appointed him a Deputy Minister for Education in charge of Tertiary Education in 2013.

His academic credentials include reading Political Science, Philosophy and Economics for his first degree at the University of Ghana, an LLB from the University of London, an MSc in Defence and International Politics from the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College, an MA in Communications and PR from the University of Leicester and an Executive Certificate in Leadership from the Harvard Kennedy School of Governance.

Before he was called into national politics, he was the MD of Savvi Solutions and before then a University of Ghana Branch Manager of Carrera Computers.

Hon. Okudzeto Ablakwa is the recipient of numerous awards including an honorary doctorate degree from the AMET University in India, being adjudged the Most Impactful MP in 2024, medal of honour from the Ghana Medical Association, special award from the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association, citation from the John Agyekum Kufuor Foundation and making it to the list of the 2025 Most Influential 100 Africans.

He is a prolific author, former President of NUGS, member of the Parliamentarians for Global Action, accredited member of the Institute for Public Relations (APR), member of the African Leadership Network, Fellow, African Youth Governance Convergence, member of the American Council for Young Political Leaders and Chairman of the Ghana-Cuba Parliamentary Friendship Association.

He is married to Lawyer Nuhela Seidu, a senior partner at Sory@Law. They are blessed with two children.