Category: Daily Guide Network

Ghana has secured a private sector led initiative that will see ‘Visit Ghana’ on the front of jersey of English Premier League side Sunderland Football Club for the 2026/2027 football season.

The partnership with Sunderland AFC could put Ghana directly in front of football audiences across the UK and around the world.

The initiative is expected to give Ghana valuable exposure through Premier League matches, digital platforms and international media.

The announcement has already attracted attention in Ghana and the UK.

The partnership could also help grow interest in Ghana travel from the UK, especially among people who may already have a connection with Africa or are simply curious about the country behind the name on the Sunderland shirt.

The project was first announced by Speaker of Parliament Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin in August, when he told Parliament that discussions with Sunderland were at an advanced stage. At the time, however, he did not announce a financial value or say that an agreement had been completed.

‘We are entering a formal engagement with them to put Visit Ghana on their jerseys and all paraphernalia. We have gone far with the discussions, and they are showing interest,’ Bagbin said.

He was clear about the source of funding for the proposed project, rejecting any suggestion that Parliament was paying for the sponsorship.

‘This is not being sponsored by Parliament. In fact, the main sponsor is from the private sector. We are leading under my canopy to get this done,’ he said.

He also acknowledged the involvement of the Ghana Football Association, the Ministry of Sports and Recreation and the Ministry of Finance, but described their role as support for the initiative rather than confirmation that government was financing the sponsorship.

The Executive Women Network (EWN), a leading network dedicated to inspiring, empowering and supporting women in senior management and executive positions, will mark its 10th anniversary with the EWN@10 Conference and Expo, scheduled for October 1-2, 2026, at the Palms Convention Centre in Accra.

Held under the theme, ‘A Decade of Leadership, A Future Towards Holistic Impact,’ the two-day conference and expo will bring together accomplished women leaders, business executives, entrepreneurs, professionals, policymakers and other stakeholders from Ghana and across Africa for conversations on leadership and meaningful impact in three main areas: Self and Family, Career and Legacy.

Speaking ahead of the conference, Chairperson of the Executive Women Network Executive Committee, Janet Sunkwa-Mills, said the 10th anniversary was an important opportunity to celebrate the women who had contributed to the Network’s journey while looking ahead to the work that remained.

‘EWN@10 is a moment to reflect on the kind of leadership we want to champion for the next decade. We believe women’s leadership must create impact not only in organisations, but also in families, communities and society. This anniversary gives us an opportunity to have those important conversations and inspire the next generation of women leaders,’ she said.

The milestone event will celebrate a decade of EWN’s contribution to advancing women’s leadership while creating a platform to examine what the next decade should look like for women seeking to make a lasting impact in their careers, families, organisations and communities.

Some of the speakers expected at the conference include Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Mavis Owusu-Gyamfi, Sheila Mika-Premo, Margaret Jackson, Komla Buami, Madam Yang Yang, Dr. Stella Agyenim-Boateng, Udo Maryanne Okonjo, Grace Krobo-Edusei, Theodore Albright and Dzigbordi K. Dosoo, among others.

Founded in 2016, EWN was established to create a community where women executives in the corporate sector and entrepreneurs could connect, share knowledge, support one another and collectively contribute to greater gender representation in leadership.

Over the past decade, the Network has grown into a community of more than 200 women leaders, with its work extending beyond professional networking to mentorship, leadership development, policy advocacy and community impact.

EWN Ellevate, in particular, focuses on developing leadership and technical skills, as well as confidence, among young girls to ensure they are better prepared for their future careers.

The initiative has supported mentorship programmes involving hundreds of students, particularly in Northern Ghana. Since its launch, EWN Ellevate has reached more than 600 girls in the Northern Region.

EWN has also partnered with institutions, including the University of Ghana and the African Science Academy, for student mentoring, while supporting initiatives aimed at empowering women and children through its community engagements.

The Conference of Heads of Private Second-Cycle Schools (CHOPSS) has assured the public of its availability to provide students who were not placed into Senior High Schools (SHSs) under the 2026 Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) with an alternative pathway to continue their education.

A statement signed by CHOPSS Head of Communications, Naphtali A. Kyei-Baffour, encouraged affected students and their parents, taking notice of the reports from the CSSPS.

It indicated that about 54,985 candidates, who sat for the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) did not qualify for placement into public SHSs under the current arrangements.

It further stressed that failure to secure a placement in a public Free SHS institutions should not be regarded as the end of a student’s educational journey noting that accredited private second-cycle schools across the country have the capacity and willingness to absorb the affected students as well as provide them with quality education to enable them to pursue their academic and career aspirations

It stated that private second-cycle schools have historically played an important role in the country’s education system by providing opportunities for students who were unable to secure admission into their preferred public institutions.

CHOPSS highlighted that before the introduction of the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) policy in 2017, placement into public SHSs operated largely on the basis of cut-off points.

It stated that students who fell outside the required cut-off points and were often unable to secure placement in public schools, subsequently turned to private second-cycle institutions.

It added that students are given the necessary academic support, training and guidance to improve their performance to develop the confidence and skills required to compete successfully with their counterparts in public schools.

CHOPSS indicated that a significant number of students who start their second-cycle education in private institutions also gain admission to tertiary institutions both in Ghana and abroad noting that some of its students are now making meaningful contributions to the development of the country in both the public and private sectors.

A 32-year-old houseboy, Abraham Awundok, has been arrested in connection with the alleged murder of his employers, Dr. Jesse Amuah and his wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Amuah Esi, who were reported missing in April 2026.

Awundok, who worked as an errand boy for the couple, allegedly murdered them and fled Ghana with their mobile phones, money and private vehicle before travelling to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

The suspect was deported from Dubai to Ghana on August 30, 2026, and subsequently arrested by a team of investigators from the Anti-Armed Robbery Unit and the INTERPOL.

According to the Inspector-General of Police, Christian Tetteh Yohuno, the suspect admitted during interrogation to murdering the couple.

Mr. Yohuno disclosed this during a press conference in Accra yesterday, saying the police launched investigations after receiving a report concerning the couple’s disappearance.

‘Investigations later established that suspect Abraham Awundok, who worked as an errand boy for the couple, had murdered them. The suspect also took their mobile phones, money and private vehicle, and subsequently left Ghana for the United Arab Emirates,’ he said.

He said the suspect was subsequently declared wanted through an INTERPOL Red Notice.

‘On August 30, 2026, the suspect was deported from Dubai to Ghana by a team of investigators from the Anti-Armed Robbery Unit and INTERPOL. During interrogation, the suspect admitted to the murder. The suspect remains in police custody as investigations continue,’ he said.

A formal complaint was lodged on April 22, 2026, after the couple had reportedly not been seen or heard from since March 23, 2026.

The police said preliminary investigations revealed troubling signs at the couple’s residence, including a locked house and the absence of their Nissan Sunny vehicle, which was also unaccounted for.

Following searches conducted at the couple’s residence and other locations they were believed to have visited, as well as information provided by family members, the police recovered their remains.

The remains were subsequently conveyed to the Police Hospital Morgue for preservation and autopsy.

He said police investigations into the circumstances surrounding the deaths and the suspect’s alleged actions are continuing.

The Ashanti Regional branch of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has introduced a new policy of deploying its communicators to television and radio stations to defend the party in Kumasi.

The deployment exercise commenced on Monday, September 7, 2026, under the Ashanti Regional NPP Communications Officer, Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku.

The DAILY GUIDE has seen a copy of the list of recognised party communicators in the Ashanti Region and the stations they have been assigned to.

The list, authored and signed by Dr. Poku, contains the names of the communicators and their assigned stations.

The policy is aimed at streamlining the party’s communications in the region, ensuring a common language, promoting discipline and enhancing monitoring.

The Ashanti Regional NPP Chairman, Odeneho Kwaku Appiah, popularly known as COKA, announced the policy a few weeks ago, saying it will improve the party’s communications.

He recounted how the party’s communications had suffered in the past due to lack of control over its communications wing.

According to COKA, the era where people visited radio and television stations on their own to speak on behalf of the NPP in Kumasi is over.

‘You can’t just go to a radio and television station in the Ashanti Region, especially in Kumasi, on your own to talk on behalf of the NPP. This will not be tolerated,’ he said.

‘Now, it is only the Ashanti Regional NPP Communications Officer, Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku, who will assign party communicators to speak for the NPP in the media in Kumasi,’ he added.

There are too many moving parts in the moral scandals popping up today under the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

We are hearing about an allegation of GHS70,000 vetting handshake to some Members of Parliament (MPs) being rejected by the Deputy Minority Leader and same returned to sender. Details are being assembled. The whole government has been jinxed.

We sometimes wonder whether the government or the country is under a spell.

Are we witnessing a bad dream or the country is being punished for some hidden iniquities?

The Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) saga and the Chief Justice’s faux pas. These are still burning on the public space and the questions being posed, not forgetting the conclusions being drawn, are just beyond our ken and, indeed, most people.

When Justice Gertrude Torkornoo was kicked out on purpose, watchers of the nasty political development said in Akan ‘Nyame wo ho’, to wit God exists. Indeed, he does, and would exact retribution in his own unique way because, after all, his ways are not ours.

Previously vociferous men of God, so-called neutrals and others who claim to represent the conscience of the nation are silent.

We are yet to hear from them who saw the evil in the previous government which birthed the Free Senior High School (SHS) and managed the affairs of this country during the unusual pandemic which struck the world.

This ‘see no evil’ attitude will not help us and posterity will judge them who claim that all is well with a system in which the Chief Justice can make political remarks and, as it were, clap for the government for a job well done.

Unless something is done about this downward moral spiral of the nation, Ghana is doomed.

Those who are singing praises to the President are not helping him but rather encouraging him to continue on the nasty tangent.

Now we understand what ‘a reset agenda is.’

President Mahama promised to reset the country, and this is evidenced in the performance of the Chief Justice as he embarks upon a tour of government establishments and presenting them with certificates of good performance. After touching base with the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) and Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), he could be preparing to inspect a guard of honour by a detachment of the Army or even the Police.

When a Chief Justice starts supporting the ‘old man’ through unprecedented tours and even undertakes comparative analysis of the performance of the two dominant parties, the judiciary could not have been more politicised and compromised.

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has demanded his resignation and rightly so. Unfortunately, the culture of holders of appointments resigning when they fail to live up to moral standards required of them is alien to this country, and so he would stay put and relish the public backlash from his verbal faux pas.

For a man awaiting his next port of call, the Council of State when his tenure ends in December, he could not care a hoot about the cacophony regarding his verbal crash.

The God of Torkornoo is the same as that of Abraham, Isaac, Samuel and the other revered men of God.

Founder and Creative Director of the EMY Africa Awards, Kojo Soboh, and Chairman of the EMY Africa Board of Patrons, Dr. Ernest Ofori Sarpong, have been honoured with prestigious Pan-African awards for their contributions to national and continental development.

The recognition was conferred by Africa’s Brain Bank. Mr. Soboh received the Pan-African Creative Icon Award, while renowned Ghanaian business mogul Dr. Ofori Sarpong took home the Global Black Business Leadership Award.

The awards were presented by veteran Nollywood actor Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD).

Reacting to the honour on social media, Kojo Soboh said the recognition reflects the core mission of EMY Africa.

‘For me, this recognition is a reflection of the work we have committed ourselves to at EMY Africa: celebrating African excellence, encouraging Africans to embrace the greatness that lies within us and all around us, and inspiring young Africans to believe in the limitless possibilities of our continent,’ he stated.

‘Africa has an incredible story to tell, and we all have a role to play in telling it with pride, purpose and excellence.’

He expressed gratitude to RMD for presenting the award.

Kojo Soboh is a Ghanaian events entrepreneur and founder of Carbon AV and EMY Africa. He established the Exclusive Men of the Year (EMY) Africa Awards in 2016 as a platform to celebrate distinguished men and fathers who are making positive impacts in society, while promoting African excellence.

What started as an awards scheme for men has grown into one of Africa’s biggest prestige events, celebrating leadership, creativity, entrepreneurship and community service across the continent, with previous honourees including business leaders, creatives, politicians and changemakers.

Somewhere in Wenchi, in the Bono Region, a family once faced a heartbreaking crossroads: allow their daughter to continue pursuing her dream of becoming a doctor, or ask her to step aside from Medicine for something cheaper.

Today, that daughter is Dr Mariam Abubakar, a junior doctor serving patients at Holy Family Hospital. The pivot that made the difference was a single, fully funded scholarship from the MTN Ghana Foundation.

As MTN Ghana marks 30 years of connecting people, businesses and communities and looks back on three decades of impact, Mariam’s story is one of the lives behind that journey. It is a story of a young woman whose dream was almost interrupted by financial difficulty, and how an investment in her education helped carry that dream through to graduation and into the medical profession.

A Dream Too Expensive to Keep

Medicine is one of the most demanding and costly programmes in any Ghanaian university. For Mariam Abubakar, gaining admission to study Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB) at the University of Cape Coast was a milestone that filled her family in Wenchi with immense pride. But pride, as they quickly discovered, cannot pay school fees.

As she moved through her academic years, the financial weight of the programme grew heavier. When the time came to raise fees for yet another year, the money simply was not there. Her family sat together and faced reality: perhaps Mariam should defer Medicine and enrol in something less costly, a programme the family could actually afford. It was a practical suggestion, born not from a lack of love but from an honest reckoning with limited means.

Mariam heard the suggestion and made a quiet decision: she would not defer. She would hunt for a scholarship instead.

‘My family suggested I defer Medicine to read another programme that was less costly. That’s what led me to scholarship hunting, so I don’t defer Medicine,’ she said.

The MTN Bright Scholarship Selection That Changed Everything

When the message came that she had been selected as an MTN Bright Scholar, Mariam did not take it quietly. The relief was total and immediate, not just for her, but for the entire family that had been holding its breath alongside her.

‘I was extremely elated. I knew where my next fees were coming from, so my heart found rest. I was among the happiest beings on earth when I found out I had been selected.’

For her family, the scholarship carried a meaning that transcended its monetary value. It was not simply tuition paid; it was confirmation that Mariam’s dream of becoming a doctor could continue. The deferral conversation was over. Medicine would continue.

For MTN Ghana, the Bright Scholarship has become part of a longer commitment to education and young people. Launched in 2017 as part of the company’s 20th anniversary celebrations, the programme has continued to support brilliant but needy students through tertiary education.

Now, as the company celebrates its 30th anniversary, Mariam’s experience offers a glimpse into what that investment has meant at an individual level: one student was able to remain in school, complete her medical training and begin the career she had always wanted.

A Triple Crown of Excellence in Medical School

In 2025, Mariam Abubakar graduated from the University of Cape Coast with her MBChB degree – a six-year programme that tests the intellectual and emotional limits of those who undertake it.

She had not deferred. She had not switched programmes. She had gone the full distance and come out a doctor.

She graduated with three distinct awards: Overall Best Student in Surgery, Best Student in Family Medicine, and the Emeritus Professor E. E. Brako’s Prize for Best Student in Microbiology.

A Family That Now Has A Doctor

After graduation, she navigated the transition period that most young doctors know well: the waiting, the paperwork, the clearance process before internship begins. In mid-April 2026, that wait ended. Mariam commenced her internship at Holy Family Hospital, working as a Junior House Officer, her first steps as a practising physician.

‘The scholarship led me into my dream career as a medical doctor. I am grateful to Allah for bringing MTN Bright Scholarship my way,’ she said.

When Mariam reflects on how the scholarship has impacted her family, she says it simply and with quiet pride: her family now has a doctor of their own.

In many Ghanaian households, particularly those outside major cities, access to quality healthcare often begins with whom you know, and what they can offer in a moment of need. For her family in Wenchi, that person is now Mariam.

Her story carries a particular resonance for families across the Bono Region and beyond who watch their children win university admissions only to watch them slip away from their programmes because the money runs out. Mariam’s journey shows what can happen when a student who is determined to continue her education gets the financial support to do so.

The MTN Ghana Foundation’s investment in her was not merely in one student. It was in the doctor she has become, the patients she will treat, the diagnoses she will make, and the families she will reassure in a hospital corridor.

As MTN Ghana celebrates 30 years, Mariam stands among the beneficiaries whose stories give meaning to those three decades. Her journey from a young medical student who feared she might have to leave Medicine to a doctor serving patients is a reminder that the impact of an investment in education can continue long after the scholarship itself has ended.

‘I am grateful to Allah for bringing MTN Bright Scholarship my way.’

The MTN Bright Scholarship

Since its launch in 2017 to mark MTN Ghana’s 20th anniversary, the Bright Scholarship has supported 1,220 brilliant but needy students to complete their tertiary education, covering the full cost of tuition, accommodation, a laptop, and a stipend for books and study materials.

Over nine years, the programme has reached beneficiaries across 18 tertiary institutions nationwide – from KNUST, the University of Ghana, and the University of Cape Coast, to colleges of education and health training institutions in every region – reflecting MTN’s deliberate investment in broad-based, equitable access to higher education rather than concentrated support in a few urban centres.

The academic outcomes speak to the calibre of support provided: 17 Bright Scholars have graduated as valedictorians or best students in their universities, 299 with first-class honours, 47 with second-class upper, and 16 with second-class lower.

For Mariam, however, the significance of the scholarship can be traced to one simple outcome: when her family could no longer see a way to keep her in medical school, she found one.

And today, there is a doctor in the family.

More than 5,000 Peace Corps volunteers have served in Ghana in the last 10 years, with over $50 million invested in human and financial resources in rural communities across the country.

This was disclosed by the Peace Corps Country Director for the African Region, Tamu Daniel, at the commemoration of 65 years of Peace Corps service in Ghana.

Ms. Daniel said the investments have supported education, health, agriculture, food security, youth development and other community-led initiatives.

She said 65 years offers perspective on what happens when people continue to show up for one another and when partnerships endure across generations.

According to her, while the statistics matter, they only tell part of the story, as the most important achievements of the programme – human connections, trust and friendship – cannot be quantified.

She cited host mothers who embrace volunteers as their own children, teachers and volunteers collaborating for student success, and farmers sharing generational knowledge with young Americans as examples of bonds that have defined the programme.

Ms. Daniel paid tribute to the people of Ghana for opening their communities and hearts, to Peace Corps staff as the institutional memory of the programme, and to volunteers who leave what is familiar to embrace the unfamiliar. She noted that while projects and reports may fade, the human connection built over 65 years travels across generations.

The Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, said since 1961, when Ghana became the first country to welcome Peace Corps volunteers under the vision of President J.F. Kennedy and President Kwame Nkrumah, the partnership has become an enduring model advancing education, health and food security.

Mr. Iddrisu said, ‘the volunteers left the comfort of the United States to serve in deprived rural communities without electricity, water or internet connectivity, driven by a commitment to support health and education’.

Touching on education, the Minister said volunteers have supported STEM instruction, foundational literacy and inclusive learning in mainstream schools and schools for the deaf, shaping Ghana’s human capital by nurturing engineers, teachers, nurses, doctors and leaders.

He praised their learner-centred and play-based pedagogy and their promotion of local languages and sign language for learners from kindergarten to Primary Three.

The Minister acknowledged Peace Corps staff, host families and Ghanaian counterparts for ensuring volunteers are prepared and integrated into communities, and reaffirmed government’s commitment to deepening the partnership for the next 65 years.

The Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S. Embassy in Accra, Rolf Olson, has described Ghana as the birthplace of an extraordinary partnership built on mutual respect and shared success.

Mr. Olson noted that President John Dramani Mahama has spoken about how a Peace Corps volunteer shaped his early education, proof that one teacher can build great things.

He expressed gratitude to government partners, ministries and host families for sustaining the partnership.

The President of Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), Bessa Simons, has revealed that the union’s leadership ‘is in talks with government officials to design a support system that will invest in highlife music in the country.’

According to him, this initiative aims to ensure that highlife, which is the music identity of Ghana, is sustained for generations to come.

He made this known during the ‘Time With The MUSIGA President and Executives’ last Friday in Accra.

Under Bessa Simons, MUSIGA has made Highlife preservation its core agenda; he led the nomination and engagement with UNESCO Ghana to get Highlife globally recognised.

His office partnered with Ghana Museums and Monuments Board to build a permanent archive and museum documenting Highlife pioneers like C.K. Mann, Daddy Lumba and others. From E.T. Mensah, C.K. Mann to Daddy Lumba, Amakye Dede and contemporary stars, Highlife is what other genres including Hiplife, Afrobeats and Afrobeats sample from.