No new recruits at Ghana’s US Embassy – Foreign Minister clarifies as visa services resume
Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has denied reports that new individuals have been recruited to replace staff at Ghana’s Embassy in Washington D.C., following its recent reopening after a temporary shutdown due to alleged misconduct.
In a Facebook post on Friday, Mr Ablakwa described such claims as “false and baseless,” emphasising that the diplomatic mission is currently being managed by a “fresh team of seasoned diplomats” drawn from within Ghana’s existing diplomatic corps. According to him, no new personnel have been hired externally to fill any vacancies created during the recent shake-up.
“Contrary to false and baseless claims, there have been no new recruitments to replace lost jobs in our Washington embassy,” the Minister stated. “We have an adequate stock of distinguished and astute diplomats to lead ongoing reforms.”
Mr Ablakwa praised the team’s performance on their first day of resumed operations, revealing that the embassy processed and issued more than 800 visas in a single day. He attributed the smooth operation to reforms and systems upgrades implemented during the recent institutional reset.
“From the briefing I have received, our reopened embassy in Washington D.C. issued over 800 visas on the first day of resumption,” he said. “I expect this level of efficiency, professionalism, and integrity to continue.”
Describing the relaunch as part of a broader “patriotic consequential reset agenda,” Mr Ablakwa rejected the suggestion that the changes were driven by political patronage. “This cannot be reduced to ‘jobs for the boys,’” he insisted.
The Foreign Minister also disclosed that an unauthorised agreement signed in 2023 between former IT head Fred Kwarteng and a senior embassy official had been annulled. He described the deal as “unauthorised, opaque and illegal,” and confirmed that it would not be recognised by the ministry.
“More on this — including details about frozen accounts and other remedial actions — will be presented in greater detail when I address Parliament next week,” he announced.
The embassy in Washington D.C. was temporarily shut down earlier this year following revelations of an IT-related fraud scheme in which Mr Kwarteng allegedly diverted visa application traffic to a private platform linked to his company. He was subsequently dismissed, and the embassy’s IT department was dissolved, triggering calls for reforms from the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee.
He further commended the current diplomatic staff for implementing what he called a “systems overhaul and institutional fumigation.”
“This is testament that Ghanaian diplomats excel when provided with the right ecosystem and leadership,” the minister added.
