Shirley Ayorkor-Botchwey Named New Commonwealth Secretary-General

• Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, Ghana's Foreign Affairs Minister, has been named as the incoming Secretary General of the Commonwealth
• Her election took place at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Apia, Samoa
• Accepting the honour, she acknowledged the daunting task ahead and expressed her readiness to start addressing them

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Ghana’s Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration Minister, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, has been elected as the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth.

She takes over from Patricia Scotland of Dominica.

Her election took place at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Apia, Samoa.

She is eligible to serve a maximum of two four-year terms.

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As Secretary General of the Commonwealth, she will preside over 56 independent and equal sovereign states with a combined population of 2.7 billion.

Her core mandate as head of the Commonwealth Secretariat is to provide the necessary support for member countries to build democratic and inclusive governments.

She would also help strengthen governance and promote justice and human rights among member states.

But with about 33 Commonwealth member states threatened by climate change and fast-rising sea levels, tackling those issues would be the most daunting task during her tenure.

Following the announcement of her appointment, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, in an X post, stated that she was honoured and humbled by other member states' trust in her abilities.

She acknowledged the daunting task ahead and expressed her readiness to start addressing them.

Meanwhile, many Ghanaians and well-wishers have flooded her comments section with congratulations.

YEN.com.gh selected a few;

Nii Lante Van Cunnison @CunnisElijah commented that;

"Congratulations S.G, you do deserve this. Your experience as a Foreign Minister will be a great resource. Ga-Danmgbe girl child has a role model to emulate and can dream the biggest of dreams🇬🇭🇬🇭🇬🇭🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎉"

DD Martins @MrDDMartins commented that:

"Congratulations, but don't take akufo addo's style of leadership over there. Otherwise, you'll also come out as the worst secretary General of the commonwealth"

Mohamad Fakih @FakihConsul commented that:

"Congratulations, Excellency Ms.Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey this is a great thing for Ghanaian diplomacy and the good people of Ghana, the right person in the right place. We wish you success and good luck."

liberatamul@gmail.com @liberatamul commented:

"Congratulations our dearest sister!! With my very best wishes of success as our new SG of the Commonwealth. You have made Africa proud💪🏾🤙🏾"

Shirley becomes a lawyer

YEN.com.gh reported that Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, has been called to the Ghana Bar.

The Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration Ministry congratulated Botchwey on becoming a lawyer.

Botchwey was among the 1,092 newly qualified lawyers called to the Bar on October 20, 2023.

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Source: YEN.com.gh