President Akufo-Addo with former Liberian president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Former Liberian President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has congratulated President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo after he was named Forbes African of the Year 2021.
Sirleaf posted a cover of the magazine celebrating Akufo-Addo with the caption: “Congratulations to President of Ghana H.E. Nana Akufo-Addo for the well-deserved and earned Forbes Africa African of the Year 2021.”
Akufo-Addo was announced African of the Year, 2021 by Forbes Africa magazine late last week – on Friday, December 3, 2021.
According to the magazine, the president had repositioned Ghana in the global marketplace as one reliant on its own resources and strengths.
Speaking to CNBC Africa after the unveiling, President Akufo-Addo said he was overwhelmed by the recognition given him by Forbes Africa.
“For the African version of the magazine to pick on me, I’m very grateful for me,” he told CNBC Africa.
When asked what this award means to him, Nana Akufo-Addo said, “it means the world is looking at the work [his government] is doing here in Ghana and it is an inspiration for “us and it is an encouragement for us to continue to go down the path that we set ourselves.”
Congratulations to President of Ghana H.E. Nana Akufo-Addo (@NAkufoAddo) for the well-deserved and earned @forbesafrica African of the Year 2021. #AfricanOfTheYear pic.twitter.com/H3EHwqhG9D
— Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (@MaEllenSirleaf) December 6, 2021
Renuka Methil, Managing Editor, Forbes Africa, indicated that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo greatly deserves the honour.
She explained, “This is the fourth year of the award. He joins an elite club of his peers in Africa who have internationally recognized. We started with Paul Kagame of Rwanda (2018), Akinwumi A. Adesina, President, African Development Bank Group (2019) and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director General, World Trade Organisation (2020).
“We have the President of Ghana as the African of the Year particularly for his consistency, he assures. He has definitely done his bit in raising the international profile of his country and also for the rest of Africa…he is actually pushing the boundaries for not just Ghana, but for the rest of Africa.”
The Forbes African of the Year award is always given to an African with global reputes, a visionary who is willing to bring serious reforms to the country he lives in.
African Business News’ “African of the Year” award recognises Africans that have made an impact on the continent.