Valerie Sawyerr, Kwasi Quartey get new appointments

President John Dramani Mahama has made changes in his administration with the announcement of two new appointments at the Presidency.

The Deputy Chief of Staff, Dr Valerie Sawyerr, takes up a new role as Senior Policy Adviser and Head of the Presidential Delivery Unit, while Ambassador Thomas Kwasi Quartey becomes the new Secretary to the President.

The appointments come on the heels of ministerial changes made last week aimed at further advancing the delivery rate of the government.

Dr Sawyerr

A daughter of the late politician and statesman, Mr Harry Sawyerr, Valerie, a lawyer by profession and highly respected senior official at the Presidency because of her approach to work, also served as Deputy Chief of Staff during the tenure of the late Prof. J.E.A. Mills.

A statement issued by the Chief of Staff, Mr Julius Debrah, said Dr Sawyerr, in her new role, would be responsible for tracking the execution of all government policies, projects and programmes to ensure the fulfilment of the President’s social contract with the people of Ghana.

“The Presidential Delivery Unit will ensure the timely execution of projects envisaged by the President and the government,” it explained.

“Dr Sawyerr’s immediate task is to monitor and evaluate the timelines set by the power sector with a view to ameliorating the effects of the current power supply shortfall," it added.

Ambassador Quartey

Mr Quartey replaces Dr Raymond Atuguba, the former Executive Secretary to the President, who returned to the University of Ghana after completing his sabbatical at the Presidency.