Director General of the National Lottery Authority

National Organizer of the NPP, Sammi Awuku, has been appointed as the new Director General of the National Lottery Authority (NLA).

Former Youth Organizer and current National Organizer of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Sammi Awuku, has been appointed as the new Director General of the National Lottery Authority (NLA). His appointment has been approved by the Council of State in line with the law governing the appointment of the NLA organizational head.

Mr Awuku until his new appointment also served as Board Chairman of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), a specialized government agency charged with the mandate of coordinating and facilitating employment opportunities for young people in Ghana.

Sammi Awuku, is expected to resign from his current position as the National Organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

Awuku takes over from the former Director General, Kofi Osei Ameyaw, who was directed by President Akufo-Addo on the 10th of March 2021, in a letter signed by the Secretary to the President, Nana Bediatuo Asante, to hand over to the Finance Director, Ernest Mortey, after his one year contract elapsed in February.

Profile of Sammi Awuku

Awuku, who is extremely admired by many for his strong passion and genuine commitment towards NPP party faithful, democratic governance, youth empowerment, public sector management and institutional governance, is a product of St. Augustine’s College, Cape Coast.

He holds a Masters Degree in International Relations from the Freie University, Berlin-Germany, an Executive Education Certificate in Public Leadership from the Harvard University, (Kennedy School of Government) USA, Diploma of Higher Education in Law from University of London.

He also holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Public Administration from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Postgraduate Certificate in Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations from the Ghana Institute of Journalism and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Psychology from the University of Ghana, Legon.

Mr. Sammi Awuku until recently was a Director of Strategy and Innovation at the April-June Company Limited in Accra and also a Director at the Brain Hill International School. He has also served as a Board Member of the Accra City Hotel, from 2017 till date.

In the past, he has been thrice elected as the Vice Chairman of the International Young Democrats Union (IYDU), an international association of the youth wings of conservative parties across the world. He is also a proud alumni of the American Council for Young Political Leaders (ACYPL), a global platform for identifying and nurturing the talents of young future leaders.

In August 2017 he was named “Continental Youth Icon-2017” by the All Africa Students’ Union (AASU) in recognition of his long standing contributions towards youth development on the African continent. Similarly, in August 2014 he was named amongst the top 50 rising African stars by the Paris-based Africa Report Magazine.

Apart from the above, he has also at various stages volunteered his services and provided strategic guidance for the development of various civil society platforms aimed at consolidating democracy and advocating for public sector reforms in Ghana.

The NLA

The NLA, where Sammi Awuku will be serving, is a public service institution designed to provide an enviable corporate platform that encourages creativity, innovation and best management practices.

The NLA was originally established as the Department of National Lotteries in 1958 with a mandate to organize raffles for the public to have fun and win prizes. In 1960, the Lotto and Betting Act 94 was passed into law to start a lottery in Ghana with the aim of raising revenue to support the development of the country.

Over the past fifty years, the NLA has evolved from its earlier incarnation as a Civil Service Institution known as the Department of National Lotteries (DNL); it has been transformed into an autonomous Public Service Institution, with a legal monopoly on the organization of lotteries in Ghana, and one which is of the most important contributors to both Government revenue and employment generation. Hence, in 2006, the passing of an Act of Parliament, the National Lotto Act 722 gave birth to National Lottery Authority.

The Work Ahead

The NLA has as its slogan, development through games. Mr. Awuku would be expected to work with his team to make this a reality. He will also be responsible for spearheading the vision of the NLA which is to create moments of hope and happiness through exciting lottery games that generate revenue for national development and make all stakeholders ultimate winners. In essence, once this vision is achieved, the mission of the NLA, which is to become the organization of choice and blueprint for lottery in Africa, will also be attained.