Abdul Kabiru Tiah Mahama

Dr. Mahama Tiah Abdul-Kabiru is a Ghanaian chartered economist, development policy analyst and politician born on 1 September 1988 in Janga in the North East Region, who serves as the Member of Parliament for the Walewale constituency. His path to Parliament combined an exceptionally deep academic preparation spanning Ghana, Canada and Japan with a legal challenge that tested the integrity of his party's internal processes before he could take his seat in January 2025.

Education

He completed his Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination at Nalerigu Secondary School in 2005, before earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University for Development Studies in 2010. He then obtained a Master of Philosophy in Development Studies from the same university in 2014 before pursuing a doctorate overseas, completing a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Hiroshima University in Japan in 2018. He also holds a Chartered Economist certificate from the American Academy of Financial Management (2015) and, after his parliamentary ambitions were well established, completed a Bachelor of Laws degree from Mountcrest University College in 2024.

Career and party connection

Between 2017 and 2024 he served as a technical advisor at the Office of the Vice President of Ghana under the NPP administration, a role that made him one of the principal economic minds contributing to the policy work of Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia. His close association with Dr Bawumia earned him the description as among the vice president's most trusted technocratic protégés. He has used his academic platform to argue that Ghana must break from its colonial economic model and chart a path toward industrial transformation and economic sovereignty.

Parliamentary journey

His road to Parliament was fractious. In the January 2024 NPP parliamentary primaries for Walewale, he narrowly defeated the sitting MP, Hajia Lariba Zuweira Abudu, by seven votes, a result she challenged in court. The legal battle was eventually resolved in his favour, and he went on to win the Walewale seat in the December 2024 general elections. He assumed office on 7 January 2025 as a first-term member of the Ninth Parliament representing the NPP, while the party sits in parliamentary minority.

Political Legacy

Dr. Mahama Tiah Abdul-Kabiru brings to Parliament a combination of formal economic expertise, international research experience and close engagement with national policy that few first-term MPs can match. His journey through a contested primary and a legal challenge before reaching the House reflects the determination underpinning a political career built alongside an already distinguished academic one.