A high-level committee of experts tasked with preparing President John Dramani Mahama’s agenda for Ghana’s 2027 African Union chairmanship has concluded its mandate, presenting five reports covering a strategy document, priority pillars and a work programme to the President at the Presidency on Friday, August 21, 2026.
Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, who chaired the committee, disclosed the handover in a statement on Sunday, August 23, describing the occasion as an honour and presenting highlights of the committee’s findings directly to Mahama.
The submission marks the formal end of a preparatory process Hon. Ablakwa launched roughly two weeks earlier, positioning Ghana’s incoming chairmanship with a completed policy framework well ahead of Mahama’s scheduled assumption of the role in January 2027.
A Committee Built From Ghana’s Diplomatic Bench
The North Tongu MP assembled a panel drawing on senior career diplomats, serving African Union officials and former ambassadors with deep experience in continental affairs.
Its members included Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Ambassador Kwasi Quartey, Ambassador Chris Kpodo, Ambassador Amma A. Twum-Amoah, Dr Delese Mimi Darko, Ambassador William Awinador-Kanyirige, Larry Gbevlo-Lartey, Dr Edem Adzogenu, Ambassador Khadija Iddrisu, Ambassador Francis D. Kotia, Dr Obodai Torto and Clarence Amoatey.
The committee’s mandate was to draw on that collective expertise to develop a strategic framework identifying the priorities Ghana should advance during its year at the helm of the continental body.
As part of the process, Hon Ablakwa had invited contributions from Ghanaians, Africans across the continent and members of the diaspora on the issues and initiatives they believed President Mahama should champion during Ghana’s tenure, broadening the input behind the final reports beyond the committee’s own membership.
Five Reports, One Strategic Framework
Hon. Ablakwa said the reports collectively set out the strategy document, priority pillars and work programme the President is expected to adopt upon assuming office. He framed the preparatory work as central to ensuring President Mahama’s tenure delivers results from the outset rather than being shaped reactively once the chairmanship begins.
“President Mahama’s tenure is expected to be transformative and impactful due to the rigorous preparatory work underway and his bold vision for our continent,” he said.
He closed his statement by expressing gratitude for the opportunity to serve Ghana and Africa through the process, and conveyed the committee’s best wishes to President Mahama ahead of his formal assumption of the chairmanship in January, signing off with the phrase “For God, Country and Africa.”
Part of a Wider Preparatory Push
The AU strategy committee is one of several tracks Ghana has run in parallel ahead of the handover.
Separately, the government opened a three-day Strategy Co-Creation and Validation Workshop on August 10 to build a three-year framework for President Mahama’s role as AU Champion on Gender and Development, a position distinct from the rotating chairmanship itself, bringing together officials from the AU Commission, the Presidency, the Ministry of Gender and the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
Ghana’s path to the chairmanship has been building since December 2025, when ECOWAS unanimously endorsed Mahama as the region’s sole candidate during the 95th Ordinary Session of its Council of Ministers in Abuja, a declaration formally adopted by West African Heads of State days later.
President Mahama further consolidated his position in February 2026, when he was elected First Vice Chair of the African Union for the year, a role that positions him directly in line to assume the chairmanship when leadership rotates to West Africa under the AU’s regional cycle.
With the strategy reports now in President Mahama’s hands, attention turns to how the priorities they contain will be translated into the President’s actual agenda once he takes the chair in January.
Hon. Ablakwa’s committee has completed its formal mandate, though the minister’s statement did not specify whether any of its members would remain involved in implementation once the chairmanship formally begins.
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