FULL LIST: Winners of the 6th Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Honours

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FULL LIST: See all the winners of controversial 6th Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Honours

GraphicOnline Jun - 09 - 2026 , 17:06 5 minutes read

The Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson was named Overall Best Minister at the 6th Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Honours, held on Saturday, June 6, 2026, at the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel Convention Centre in Accra.

The ceremony brought together ministers of state, deputy ministers, chief executive officers of state institutions, metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives, as well as other key stakeholders in governance and public administration.

Following the award, President John Dramani Mahama has directed all ministers of state, CEOs of state institutions, and other political appointees to refrain from participating in, sponsoring, endorsing, attending, or accepting awards from organisations unless expressly authorised by the Office of the President.

According to the Presidency, it has been noted with concern that there was an increasing trend of ministers of state, chief executive officers of state institutions, and other public officials participating in and accepting awards from various private organisations purporting to recognise them as the "best-performing", "most outstanding", or "most influential" public office holders.

In many instances, the organisations conferring such awards are largely unknown to the public, their credentials are unclear, and no transparent, objective, or verifiable criteria exist for assessing the performance of public officials, the presidency indicated.

The president's directive followed a controversy about the Key Performance Index (KPI) associated with such awards and whether or not they were tied to monetary payments before awards are given out.

The Director-General of the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), Prof Michael Kpessa-Whyte had earlier raised an issue with the 6th Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Honours and suggested the options communicated to him when he received a nomination letter indicated that he had been selected as the Best CEO of the Year were that, either a sponsorship package of GH¢50,000 for SIGA or the purchase of a dinner table of eight at GH¢25,000.

In other words, the path to public recognition appeared to have been tied to financial contribution and so he opted out.

Full list of winners

The following individuals were recognised at the 6th edition of the awards:

Overall Best Minister – Dr Cassiel Ato Forson (Minister for Finance)

Best Male Performing Minister – Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah (Minister for Lands and Natural Resources)

Best Regional Minister – Linda Obenewaa Akweley Ocloo (Greater Accra Regional Minister)

Best Deputy Minister – Dorcas Affo-Toffey (Deputy Minister for Transport)

Best Female Minister – Rita Akosua Adjei Awatey (Eastern Regional Minister)

Most Impactful New Member of Parliament of the Year – Kwame Asare Obeng (A Plus)

Best MP – Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor

Best Female CEO – Ruth Dela Seddoh (National Service Authority)

Best Performing CEO of the Year – Julius Neequaye Kotey (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority)

Best Performing CEO (State Companies) – Prof Ransford Gyampo

Best Performing CEO – Prof George Agyei (Ghana Standards Authority)

Awards based on merit, not money – Secretariat

The Secretariat of the Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Honours dismissed claims that recognition under the scheme is influenced by financial contributions, insisting that selection is strictly based on merit and service to national development.

In a statement issued on Monday, 8th June 2026, the Secretariat stressed that the honours system is designed to reward leadership, innovation and impact in public service, and not to serve as a platform for financial inducement.

"No individual or institution is required to provide financial support in order to be considered for recognition, selected for an Honour, or receive an award. Recognition decisions under the Honours remain independent of stakeholder engagements associated with the organisation of the programme," the statement read.

President Mahama bans officials from private awards

However, just days after the ceremony, President John Dramani Mahama issued a directive banning all ministers of state, chief executive officers of state institutions and other political appointees from participating in, sponsoring, endorsing, attending or accepting awards from private organisations unless expressly authorised by the Office of the President.

In a letter dated 8th June 2026, signed by Secretary to the President Dr Callistus Mahama, the Presidency expressed concern about the increasing trend of public officials accepting awards from private organisations with unclear credentials and no transparent criteria for assessing performance.

"The proliferation of such awards has the potential to undermine the integrity of public service, create misconceptions regarding government performance assessment, and expose the Government to unnecessary public criticism and embarrassment," the letter stated.

"Public office is a solemn responsibility entrusted to officials by the people of Ghana. Performance in the office cannot be measured by privately organised ceremonies, self-appointed rating bodies, or commercial award schemes whose methodologies and standards are neither established nor subject to public scrutiny."

Presidential review of performance

The President directed that the true measure of performance for ministers and chief executive officers is the extent to which they fulfil policy objectives, programmes and sector-specific targets outlined in the 2024 National Democratic Congress manifesto, the government's development agenda, and performance indicators agreed with supervising authorities.

The Presidency announced that it will undertake a comprehensive review of the performance of ministers and chief executive officers in due course, and the findings will constitute a key basis for decisions relating to retention in office, reassignment of responsibilities and any future Cabinet or executive restructuring.

Award history

The Secretariat noted that past recipients of the honours have included respected statesmen such as Prof Aaron Mike Oquaye for his parliamentary service, Prof Joshua Alabi for leadership in higher education, Kwamena Bartels for public service, Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, Alan Kyerematen, Dr Kwame Addo Kufuor, Hackman Owusu-Agyemang and Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu.

The 2026 edition continued this tradition by recognising outstanding contributions across government ministries, regional administrations, local governance institutions, public agencies and state-owned enterprises.

The Ghana Ministers of State Excellence Honours was organised by Big Events Ghana, whose founder is Prince Emmanuel Markey. The Secretariat stated that the platform remains committed to encouraging excellence, recognising achievement and promoting a national culture that values dedicated service, visionary leadership and measurable impact.