Samira Bawumia

Samira Bawumia (née Ramadan) (born on Wednesday, 20 August 1980) is a Ghanaian politician and the Second Lady of the Republic of Ghana. She is married to the Vice President of Ghana, Mahamudu Bawumia. She received the Ghanaian Women Association of Georgia Global Humanitarian Award, an honor from the Atlanta City Council and is also recognized by the Macon Bibb country. She graduated from the University of London with a bachelor’s degree in law.

Early childhood
Bawumia began her early education at the Answarudeen Islamic School at Fadama and Alsyd Academy in Accra, before continuing to the Akosombo International School (AIS) and then to Mfantsiman Girls' Secondary School at Saltpond in the Central Region of Ghana. She is the only daughter of Alhaji Ahmed Ramadan, the former National Chairman of the People’s National Convention (PNC) and Hajia Ayesha Ramadan.

Tertiary Education
Following her admission to Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), she studied BA. Social Science in Law and Sociology and Technology. At the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), where she had her postgraduate studies, she was awarded the Best Student in Master of Business Administration (MBA).

In March 2023, Bawumia announced on her Instagram handle with graduation photos that, she has graduated from the University of London, UK with a Bachelor's degree in Law. She indicated that despite COVID-19, she took advantage of the online programme offered by the UK institution by enrolling in a law degree.

She is multi-lingual, fluent in Ewe, Ga, Twi, Fanti and Mamprusi.

Recognition
In 2018, Bawumia was made an Ambassador for the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves and joins the late former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, Academy Award-winning actor Julia Roberts, and Grammy-nominated Ghanaian musician Rocky Dawuni to work with the Alliance and its partners to raise awareness of household air pollution and encourage broader adoption of clean cooking solutions in developing countries in a bid to create cleaner environments and eradicate deaths caused by pollution from the burning of solid fuels for cooking.

The African Women of Excellence Awards, a scheme organized by the African Union in partnership with the Diasporan African Forum (DAF) recognized Bawumia on 29 September 2018 in Sandton City-Johannesburg, South Africa for her contribution to peace within social, political and economic spheres.

In 2019, she was acknowledged as the first of seven individuals honored by Sustainable Energy for All in conjunction with Ashden. This was in recognition of her efforts towards the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 7, which is to ensure access to modern reliable, renewable, and affordable energy for all by 2030.

At the 7th Annual Maternity Fundraising Gala of the Ghanaian Women Association of Georgia, Bawumia was honoured with three awards for her humanitarian activities and interventions. The awards include the following the Macon-Bibb County Award, the GWAG Humanitarian Award, and the Atlantic City Council Award presented by the Mayor of the County, Lester Miller. The World Biogas Summit 2023 held in Birmingham welcomed Bawumia as one of the keynote speakers.

Humanitarian Initiatives
Bawumia is the founder and CEO of the Samira Empowerment & Humanitarian Projects (SEHP), described as a not-for-profit organization established with the purpose of empowering the underprivileged in Ghana through diverse social intervention projects to improve lives. In November 2019, she donated library books to Police Basic Schools in the country to inculcate the habit of reading in children. This was an initiative of her 'Library in the box' project which has the objective of making books available to schools. She also started the Samira Bawumia literature prize.The annual literacy prize for young Ghanaians between the ages of 15 and 25 is aimed at providing young creative and writers with an opportunity to share their art with the world. The first winners of the Samira Bawumia Literature Prize were crowned at the Fitzgerald in Accra on Monday, 27 July 2020.

The Samira Empowerment & Humanitarian Projects also has the passion of empowering women. The organization has championed visions invested in educating and empowering women. One notable project she did was "Needles4Girls", where she enrolled about 2,500 girls into fashion school to empower them and help in reducing the unemployment rate in the country. She also donated 3,000 Ghana cedis each to 70 women in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana to support their trading activities. Samira Bawumia believes in giving women opportunities to empower them in making a difference in the economy of Ghana.

Politics
Samira Bawumia became prominent on the political scene when her husband, Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia was the running mate of the candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2016 under the ticket of the New Patriotic Party(NPP). She has been a constant feature on the political scene after her husband and party won the election in 2016 and got re-elected for a second term.

Months leading to the 2020 elections as Second Lady of the Republic, she was seen on the campaign trail across the country urging voters to vote for the New Patriotic Party and her husband as Vice-President for a second term  as well as calling the NPP party to unity in the upcoming elections to retain victory.

In 2021, Bawumia and the First Lady of the Republic of Ghana rejected new emoluments for Article 71 office holders which included the spouses of Vice-President and President of the Republic of Ghana respectively, and promised to refund all monies received from 2017 when they took office to date.

In May 2023, Bawumia and the NPP stormed Kumawu to campaign for the Member of Parliament aspirant on the party ticket to win the seat.

Personal life
Bawumia is married to the Vice President of Ghana, Mahamadu Bawumia and they have 4 children. She gained widespread attention during the 2016 Ghanaian Parliamentary and Presidential election season. She advocates against corruption and the ineffective administration of state resources. https://sbawumia.org/samira-bawumia-profile/