John Agyekum Kufuor
- Date of birth: December 8, 1938
- Hometown: Kumasi, Ghana
- Spouse: Theresa Kufuor (m. 1962–2023)
- Children: Nana Ama Gyamfi, Saah Kufuor, Owusu Afriyie Kufuor, J. Addo Kufuor, Agyekum Kufuor
- Served: 7 January 2001 to 7 January 2009.
John Agyekum Kufuor is a Ghanaian businessman and politician who served as the President of Ghana from 2001 to 2009. He was born on December 8, 1938, in Kumasi, Ghana. Kufuor married Theresa Aba Kufuor (née Mensah) in 1962, with whom he has had five children.
Career
Kufuor started his career as a lawyer and later became a politician. He served as the chief legal officer and town clerk for the city of Kumasi in 1967.
In 1969, he was appointed as a member of Parliament and deputy foreign minister in the government of Kofi Busia. After Busia was overthrown in 1972, Kufuor spent several years as a businessman in the private sector. During Ghana’s transition back to democracy in 1979, Kufuor returned to public life.
He was a member of the assembly that drafted the constitution of the third republic, and he was elected to Parliament in 1979, serving as deputy minority parliamentary leader.
After Jerry J. Rawlings overthrew the government in late 1981, Kufuor stayed on as Rawlings’s secretary for local government. He resigned less than a year later, however, expressing his disappointment with the Rawlings regime.
Kufuor helped found the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and in 1996 became the party’s candidate for president. In December 2000 election, he won the presidential election and served two terms as president of Ghana from 2001 to 2009.
Achievements
During his presidency, Kufuor implemented several policies that helped improve Ghana’s economy and infrastructure. Some of his notable achievements include:
- The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), which provides health insurance to Ghanaians.
- The Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) program, which provides cash transfers to poor households.
- The National Youth Employment Program (NYEP), which provides employment opportunities for young people.
- The School Feeding Program, which provides free meals to schoolchildren.
Awards
John Agyekum Kufuor has received numerous awards throughout his career. Here are some of them:
- Chatham House Prize for good leadership by Queen Elizabeth II of Britain.
- Germany’s highest national award, the Bundesverskkreuz, by former President Horst Kohler.
- Liberia’s highest award of the Grand Cordon in the Most Venerable Order of the Knighthood of the Pioneers for helping to return peace to that country.
- Lifetime Achievement Honours at the Ghana Energy Awards in 2021.
