Samira Bawumia

Samira Bawumia, born Samira Ramadan, was Second Lady of Ghana from 7 January 2017 to 7 January 2025, as the wife of Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia. She founded Samira Empowerment and Humanitarian Projects (SEHP), a charity focused on women, girls and literacy.

Family and education

She was born on 20 August 1980 in Sabon Zango, Accra, to Alhaji Ahmed Ramadan, a former national chairman of the People's National Convention, and Hajia Ayesha Ramadan. She is Fulani and speaks Hausa, Fulani, Ewe, Ga, Twi, Fante and Mampruli. She attended Answarudeen Islamic School, Akosombo International School and Mfantsiman Girls' Secondary School, then took a BA at KNUST. She earned an MBA at GIMPA in 2012, graduating as best student, and completed an online law degree with the University of London in 2023. She and Mahamudu Bawumia have four children.

Second Lady

Through SEHP she ran Library in the Box, which set up libraries in schools, and Needles4Girls, which put about 2,500 girls through fashion and tailoring training. She created the Samira Bawumia Literature Prize for Ghanaian writers. In 2018 she became an ambassador for the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, campaigning on the health harm of cooking over open fires, and received an African Women of Excellence Award. She also received recognition from Sustainable Energy for All in 2019.

After 2025

Her husband was the New Patriotic Party's presidential candidate in December 2024 and lost to John Mahama, ending her time as Second Lady in January 2025. Avance Media named her on its inaugural Top 100 Ghanaians Powerlist that year.