United Bank for Africa (UBA) Ghana has appointed Kweku Andoh Awotwi as chairman of the bank’s board following approval by the Bank of Ghana (BoG).
Awotwi is the immediate past managing director of Tullow Oil Ghana Ltd and executive vice-president of Tullow Oil plc.
He has over 30 years of work experience, having occupied various managerial positions in both national and multinational organisations, notably the Volta River Authority (VRA), Tullow Oil and Ashanti Goldfields Company.
He is expected to bring on board his rich experience, spanning several sectors of the local and global economy, to support UBA Ghana to attain its strategic objectives.
Strategic vision
The managing director and chief executive officer of UBA Ghana, Balogun Olalekan, described Awotwi as a consummate professional who has a deep understanding of corporate governance and business development.
“He will offer the leadership to take UBA Ghana to the next level towards becoming a dominant player in the banking industry in Ghana. Mr Awotwi brings a wealth of experience with a strategic vision for our organisation, and that will be critical to our ability to scale and meet the growing demand for excellent banking solutions for our cherished customers.”
For his part, Awotwi described his appointment as a challenge to which he is looking forward.
He expressed his gratitude to the existing board members and the UBA Group board for the work they have done so far in positioning United Bank for Africa as a significant financial institution in Ghana and the continent of Africa.
“I am excited for what the future holds as we position the bank as a dominant player in the financial services and banking sector in Ghana,” he said.
Strengthening capacity
To further the bank’s efforts to build a strong and vibrant board for UBA Ghana, the bank appointed Francis Koranteng, Samuel Ayim and Ivan Avereyireh to the board as independent non-executive directors in 2019. Abiola Bawuah was also appointed a non-executive director.
Earlier this year, the Bank of Ghana approved the appointments of Balogun Olalekan and Sylvia Inkoom as managing director and deputy managing director, respectively. They are currently executive directors on the board of UBA Ghana.
Awotwi’s appointment is in line with the overall strategy to strengthen the board’s capacity to ensure effective leadership of the bank.
Profile
Kweku Andoh Awotwi has over 30 years of work experience with various organisations and institutions in various portfolios.
He started his career as a design engineer at ITT- Advanced Technology Center and the GE/RCA David Sarnoff Laboratory, both in the United States, between 1984 and 1988.
After obtaining his MBA, he worked at Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Corporation in California, USA between 1990 and 1998. He left as manager of business planning and analysis for the primary business unit.
He then went to work for Ashanti Goldfields Ltd between 1998 and 2004 as director of strategic planning and new business development.
Awotwi has been involved in many entrepreneurial ventures, notable among them the development and completion in 2019 of the Kpone Independent Power Project. He also became chief executive for Midway Resources International between 2005 and 2009.
In 2009, he was appointed chief executive officer of Volta River Authority, a position he held for just under five years, leaving at the end of 2013.
Most recently, he was appointed managing director of Tullow Ghana Ltd in March 2018. He was promoted to the position of executive vice-president of Tullow plc, UK in April 2019 and retired in June 2020.
Mr Awotwi holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in electrical engineering, economics and political science from Yale University and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree in general management and international business from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.
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