Emmanuel Noi Omaboe, Nana Wereko Ampem II, GM (29 October 1930 – 26 November 2005) was a Ghanaian traditional ruler, a public servant and an economist. He was Gyaasehene of Akuapem and Omanhene of Amanokrom from 1975 till his death in 2005. He became Commissioner of Economic Affairs of Ghana, from 1967 to 1969. He served as the Ghanaian Government Statistician from 1960 to 1966 in Nkrumah's Government.[1][2]
Oyeeman Wereko Ampem II was born on 29 October 1930 at Amanokrom in the Akuapim North District. His parents were Peter Nortey Omaboe of the Osu Adjuate We Royal family and Mary Opeibea Awuku of the Royal Asona Clan of Amanokrom.
He attended the Mamfe Presbyterian School, Suhum Presbyterian Middle School and the Accra Academy, which he completed in the year, 1950. He entered the University College of the Gold Coast (at Achimota) in 1951, to read for a degree in Economics. He was awarded a Ghana Government scholarship, after passing Part I of the B.Sc in Economics degree in 1954 to complete Part II of the B.Sc in Economics degree in Statistics at the London School of Economics graduating with first class honours.[1]
The L.S.E offered him a postgraduate masters studentship in Statistics and after a year of this, he returned to the University College of Ghana as an Economics Research Fellow where he lectured in Statistics.
Public service[edit]
In 1959, he was appointed the deputy government statistician and promoted soon thereafter to become the Government Statistician in July 1960 due to the Africanization policy of the civil service by Kwame Nkrumah,who was the first Head of State of Ghana(1960-1966).Omaboe was the first Ghanaian to hold this position, and at the age of 29, the youngest head of a government department.[1][3][4] Omaboe was the Census Coordinator for the 1960 Population Census which was the first scientifically conducted population census in Ghana.
In October 1960, when the State Planning Commission was constituted by Kwame Nkrumah, Omaboe was its Chairman with Joseph Henry Mensah as his Vice. The State Planning Commission brought about and worked on the Seven-Year Development Plan (1963-1970), which was formally launched in 1964.[5]
After the 1966 coup d'etat, he took up the post of Chairman of the Economic Committee of the National Liberation Council and subsequently Commissioner for Economic Affairs.[6][7] In this roles, he defined the Government's policies toward liberalisation, including devaluation of the Cedi, abolition of import licensing and privatisation of loss-makimg state enterprises. [8]
On the handing over of the administration of the country by the NLC, he retired from public service in 1969 in order to escape entering into party politics and took up a one-year fellowship at the Harvard Centre for International Affairs.
Post Public Service[edit]
Business Career[edit]
From Harvard, upon his retirement from public service, he returned to Ghana to set up a private management consultancy firm, E.N. Omaboe and Associates, an area which was new in Ghana in 1970. His role in this new firm was as its chairman. He partnered Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey and Peter Hasford in the purchase of the advertising firm, Lintas West Africa and Afromedia Ghana from Unilever. He became chairman of Lintas W.A, immediately after the purchase.
He also served on the board of directors of Barclays Bank Ghana Ltd. from 1971 to 2005, and was the chairman of the bank from 1991 to 2005. In 1989, he had helped set up the Ghana Stock Exchange. [9] He was Chairman of Reiss & Co. (Ghana) Ltd. Together with Kwame Pianim, he established the investment banking firm, New World Investment, in 1995 and was its first Chairman. In 2002, he was instrumental in establishing Credit Reference Bureau (CRB) Group in Ghana, which is one of the only two credit rating institutions in Ghana, and became its Chairman until his death in 2005.
UN appointments[edit]
Omaboe served as a member of the Advisory Committee on Post Adjustment Questions of the U.N. International Civil Service Commission starting in 1967 and ending in 1985.[10]
He served on the UN Investment Committee which manages the investments of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund, and was made a member emeritus.[11][12] Omaboe served on this committee for twenty-four years, eight of which he was Chairman, and during this period, the pension fund grew from US$2.1 billion to US$26.5 billion, with an increasingly global diverstification of its portfolio.
University of Ghana[edit]
He was made Chairman of the Executive Council of the University of Ghana Medical School, succeeding Harry Sawyerr, the first chairman. When in 1999, he was nominated Chancellor of University of Ghana after an extensive search, he was the first Ghanaian other than a head of state to be nominated as Chancellor of the University. He received the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from the University of Ghana, Legon in 1999. [1][13]
Chieftaincy[edit]
He was installed "Omanhene" (Chief) of Amanokrom and "Gyasehene" of Akuapem in 1975. During his time as traditional ruler, he undertook the projects of the construction of the Manko Aba Ahenfie and the Amanokrom Community Centre. The annual Odwira experienced large turn up of indigenous people living elsewhere and foreigners from abroad due to his image.[14][15][16][17]
Sports[edit]
Omaboe was a member of the Achimota Golf Club. From 1974 to 1975, he captained the Achimota Golf Club and served as President of the Club from 1990 to 1998.
Omaboe had always had deep interest in football and was a fan of Accra Hearts of Oak since his schooling days at Accra Academy. He took active interest in the running of the Club and became a member of its management committee in the early 1970's and a Director of the football club. In 1989, he was chosen to be Chief Patron and President of the Council of Patrons of Accra Hearts of Oak S. C. to succeed Joseph Arthur Ankrah. The Council of Patrons is the highest hierarchical body of the Club and he served in this position till his death .[18]
Under his presidency of the Council of Patrons of Accra Hearts of Oak Soccer Club, the Club won a total of 42 competitive and ceremonial cups and set an all time record by winning the Ghana Premier League six (6) consecutive times in 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002. The Club for the first time won the CAF Champions League trophy in 2000 and set another Ghanaian record by winning the 8th CAF Super Cup (2001) and crowned this achievements by being the first Club in Africa to win the 1st CAF Confederation Cup in 2004.[19]
Awards and honours[edit]
In 1960, he was elected a member of the International Statistical Institute, and became the first African member of the institute.[20] He later served as a council member of the International Statistical Institute starting from 1968. He received the Grand Medal (Civil Division) of the Republic of Ghana in 1968, the highest honour of his country then available in that period. In 1973, Omaboe was elected Honorary Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society. He was made President of the Economic Society of Ghana.
Personal life[edit]
Oyeeman was married to Letitia Omaboe with whom he had five children. His son, Nortey Omaboe is the Chief Executive of GCNet. His daughter, Norkor Duah is the Chief Executive of the marketing communications firm, Mullen Lowe Accra and previously served as the Vice President of International Advertising Association.[21][22][23]
He engaged in some philanthropic acts such as serving as the Chief Patron of the Prisons Fellowship of Ghana (1982-2005). He was a founding member and chairman of the Ghana Social Marketing Foundation and actively supported till his death. In 2004, he procured a rare collection of Ashanti Gold weights from a German Vendor, and donated the entire collection of 1000 artifacts to the Institute of African Studies, Legon as a private deed of gift to promote cultural education within the University of Ghana. He singularly cut the commemorative opening tape for the opening of the Ablade Glover's Gallery (Alliance Gallery) at Omanye House in Accra.
He was a lifelong Presbyterian and was known to worship at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church, Osu. He was also a Freemason, belonging to the District Grand Lodge of Ghana under the United Grand Lodge of England.
Death and royal funeral[edit]
Oyeeman Wereko Ampem II died of natural causes on 26 November 2005, aged 75 years. A memorial service was held for him at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church, Osu. The royal funeral and burial took place at Amanokrom.[24]
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