Edward Nasigrie Mahama (born 15 April 1945) is a

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

ian medical doctor and politician.

Early life and education

Born in the village of Sumniboma (northern Ghana) in 1945, Mahama attended Nalerigu Primary and Middle School from 1953 to 1959. He then attended Secondary School in

Tamale A tamale, in Spanish tamal, is a traditional Mesoamerican dish made of masa, a dough made from nixtamalized corn, which is steamed in a corn husk or banana leaf. The wrapping can either be discarded prior to eating or used as a plate. Tamales ...

from 1961 to 1965. Later that year, he was admitted to the

University of Ghana The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It the oldest and largest of the thirteen Ghanaian national public universities. The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the Br ...

Legon Legon , a suburb of the Ghanaian city Accra, is situated about north-east of the city center in the Accra Metropolis District, a district in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Legon is home to the main campus of the University of Ghana. Ghanaia ...

and graduated in 1972 with a medical degree.

Medicine

Mahama went back to Nalerigu as a medical doctor in September 1973 and four years later, he left Ghana to become an

Obstetrics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

and

Gynecology Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined area ...

Physician in Chicago,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockfo ...

. During this period, he was also a Clinical Instructor at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Chart ...

. In 1990, Mahama was appointed a lecturer at the

Medical School and consultant at

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

's Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. He was elected a fellow of the West African College of Surgeons in 1994.

Politics

In 1996, running as the presidential candidate of the People's National Convention (PNC), he received 3.0% of the vote. In his second attempt at the presidency, in 2000, he won 2.5% of the vote. In preparation for the 2004 presidential election, the PNC and two other parties –

Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere The Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere (EGLE) is an inactive political party in terms of elections in Ghana. It has not contested any elections since the 2004 Ghanaian general election. According to Ghanaian law, political parties must have a prese ...

(EGLE) and the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP) – formed an alliance known as the

Grand Coalition A grand coalition is an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government. The term is most commonly used in countries where there are t ...

and chose Mahama as its presidential candidate. He placed third out of four candidates, winning 1.9% of the vote. Mahama was elected as the candidate for the PNC for the December 7, 2008 presidential elections. Edward Mahama lost the position of presidential candidate of the PNC to Hassan Ayariga in the run up to the 2012 general election. However, he won the position back from Ayariga for the 2016 election. After the defeat, Ayariga left the PNC to form another party, the

All People's Congress The All People's Congress (APC) is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, the other being its main political rival the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP). The APC has been the main opposition party in Sierra Leone since 4 Apr ...

(APC). Edward Mahama is currently Ghana's Ambassador-at-Large.

Family

Mahama is married and the father of four children.

References

1945 births Ghanaian gynaecologists Living people University of Ghana alumni Academic staff of the University of Ghana People's National Convention (Ghana) politicians Candidates for President of Ghana Tamale Senior High School alumni {{Ghana-politician-stub