Samuel Kelvin Esson Jonah | |
---|---|
Born | Sam Jonah 19 November 1949 |
Nationality | Ghanaian |
Education | Adisadel College, Ghana |
Alma mater | Camborne School of Mines and Imperial College |
Occupation | Businessman |
Years active | 1970 – present |
Board member of | Vodafone, Global Advisory Council of the Bank of America, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Foundation |
Samuel Esson Jonah (born 19 November 1949) is a Ghanaian businessman and the current chancellor of the University of Cape Coast. [1] He is the executive chairman of Jonah Capital, an equity fund based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Jonah was previously president of AngloGold Ashanti and shared the strategic leadership of the company with its CEO, Bobby Godsell. [2] [3]
Sam Jonah is a Fante Royal but born in Obuasi and had his high-school education at Adisadel College then earned an Associateship in Mining Engineering at the Camborne School of Mines and subsequently a MSc in Mine Management at the Imperial College of Science and Technology. [4]
He joined Ashanti Goldfields Corporation in 1979, [5] working in various capacities, including underground operations. At the age of 36 he became the chief executive officer, and supervised the transformation of Ashanti Goldfields into a mining multinational, [6] [7] increased gold production from 240,000 ounces per annum to over 1.6 million ounces in over ten years, and oversaw the company's listing as the first operating African company on the New York Stock Exchange.
In 2009, he became a non-executive director of Vodafone. [8] [9]
Jonah was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2019 for leadership and technical contributions in advancing the mineral industry in Africa.
Currently, the chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, Jonah chairs the boards of Equator Exploration Limited, Scharrig Mining, Equinox Minerals, Uramin, Moto Goldmines Ltd and Range Resources Limited. He also serves or has served on various boards, [10] including Transnet, Mittal Steel SA, Ashesi University, Standard Bank of South Africa, Lonmin, the Commonwealth African Investment Fund (Comafin), the advisory council of the UN Secretary General's Global Compact, President Olusegun Obasanjo's International Investment Advisory Council on Nigeria, President Thabo Mbeki's International Investment Advisory Council of South Africa, and President John Kufuor's Ghana Investors' Advisory Council. As well as his directorships, Jonah is a member of the advisory board of the London Business School. He is also a board member of the Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Foundation. [11]
Jonah's honours include an honorary Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) degree awarded jointly by the Camborne School of Mines and the University of Exeter (UK) in 1996. Jonah House in Adisadel College has been named after his father, Thomas Jonah. [12] In June 2003, Jonah became the first Ghanaian to be knighted in the 21st century [13] when he was presented with an honorary knighthood (KBE) by the Prince of Wales, in recognition of his achievements as an African businessman, a leading business executive from the Commonwealth, and an international public figure. [14] [3] Jonah has listed among the richest people in Ghana. [15] On 5 December 2019, he was appreciated by the Ghana Mine workers union with a platinum award for his contribution to developing the mining industry in Ghana. [16] In January 2023, he was listed among the 100 most reputable Africans in the field of business. [17] [18]
Osei Tutu II is the 16th Asantehene, enstooled on 26 April 1999. By name, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II is in direct succession to the 17th-century founder of the Ashanti Empire, Otumfuo Osei Tutu I. He is also the Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Otumfuo Osei Tutu II is the Grand Patron of the Grand Lodge of Ghana and the Sword Bearer of the United Grand Lodge of England.
The Ashanti Goldfields Corporation is a gold mining company based in Ghana that was founded by Joseph Ellis and Joseph Biney both from Cape Coast. The Ashanti Mine, located at Obuasi, 56 km south of Kumasi, has been producing since 1897. During the turn of the century 1900, the Ashanti Goldfields Corporation was among the most important gold mining companies listed at the London Stock Exchange. The mine is sited on one of the world's major gold deposits and is one of the ten largest in the world.
Okomfo Anokye (c.1655-c.1717?/c.1719) was the first priest (Okomfo) of the Ashanti Empire. Anokye is known for his participation in the expansion of the empire. He was also the codifier of the constitution and laws of the Ashanti Empire.
Obuasi is a gold mining community and town which is the capital of the Obuasi Municipal District in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. It lies in the southern part of the Obuasi Municipal, 39 miles south-west of Ashanti capital city Kumasi. Obuasi has a population of 175,043 people. Obuasi mining community has a mixture of the Ashanti people culture and the semi-island exclave Ashantiland.
AngloGold Ashanti Limited is an independent and global gold mining company with a diverse high-quality portfolio of cooperation, projects and exploration activities formed in 2004 by the merger of AngloGold and the Ashanti Goldfields Corporation. As of 2022, it was a global gold producer with 21 operations on four continents, listed on the New York, Johannesburg, Accra, London and Australian stock exchanges, as well as the Paris and Brussels bourses, but left the Johannesburg exchange in 2023. As of May 2023, it was the world’s fourth-largest gold miner with assets in Ghana, Australia, the US and Argentina.
Camborne School of Mines, commonly abbreviated to CSM, was founded in 1888. Its research and teaching is related to the understanding and management of the Earth's natural processes, resources and the environment. It has undergraduate, postgraduate and research degree programmes within the Earth resources, civil engineering and environmental sectors. CSM is located at the Penryn Campus, near Falmouth, Cornwall, UK. The school merged with the University of Exeter in 1993.
Asante Kotoko Sporting Club, simply known as Asante Kotoko, is a professional football club founded on 31 August 1935 and based in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Nicknamed the Porcupine Warriors, they compete in the Ghana Premier League and play their home matches at the Baba Yara Stadium in Amakom, Kumasi.
Otumfuo Opoku Ware II was the 15th Asantehene. He succeeded his uncle Osei Tutu Agyeman Prempeh II on the 27th July 1970. He ruled for 29 years until his death in February 1999. He was succeeded by Otumfuo Nana Osei Tutu II.
Kojo Acquah Yankah is a former Member of Parliament in Ghana. He also served as a Minister of State in the Rawlings government. He is the founder and President of the African University College of Communications and is also a former editor of the Daily Graphic, the widest circulation newspaper in Ghana.
Bonwire is a town in Ghana, located in the Ejisu-Juaben Municipal district within the Ashanti Region. The town is located about 18 km on the Kumasi-Mampong road. According to Akan oral tradition, Kente originates from Bonwire.
Prempeh II, was the 14th Asantehene, or king of the Ashanti, reigning from 22 June 1931 to 27 May 1970.
Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare is a Ghanaian lawyer and politician who served as Minister for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts. She was appointed to this position by President John Mahama in 2013 when he formed his first substantive government. She is a member of the National Democratic Congress. She is currently a member for the 8th Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana representing the Techiman North Constituency.
Samuel Sarpong is a Ghanaian politician and a former Ashanti Regional Minister of Ghana. Prior to heading the Ashanti Region, he was the Central Regional Minister. Former Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive.
Osei Tutu Senior High School is an all-boys senior high school located in Akropong in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. It is ranked among the best senior high schools in the Ashanti Region.
Rattray Park is a recreational and a modern amusement park located in Kumasi in the capital city of the Ashanti Region of Ghana.
Nana Afia Kobi Serwaa Ampem II was the Queen mother (Ohemaa) of the Ashanti Kingdom and mother of the current Asantehene, Otumfuo Nana Osei Tutu II, who is the youngest son of her five children. She was the 13th Queen mother of the Ashanti Kingdom.
Jacob Osei Yeboah is a politician who contested as an independent candidate for Ghana's presidential elections in 2012 and 2016. Out of seventeen candidates, Yeboah and three others survived the Electoral Commission's controversial disqualification of candidates ahead of the 2016 general elections.
Henry Kwasi Prempeh was a Ghanaian judge. He was a justice of the Supreme Court of Ghana from 1971 to 1972.
Kojo Bonsu is a Ghanaian businessman, sports administrator, and politician, who served as the Metropolitan Chief Executive of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly from 2013 to 2016. He is a member of the National Democratic Congress.
Nana Konadu Yiadom III is the Queen mother (Asantehemaa) of the Ashanti Kingdom. She is the 14th Queen mother of the kingdom.