Globally renowned Ghanaian business titan Sir Sam Jonah has shared a deeply personal and inspiring message as he delivered a speech at the Academic City University on Saturday, June 7, 2025.
Drawing from his humble beginnings as a labourer in the challenging environment of the Obuasi gold mines, Sir Sam, the Executive Chairman of Jonah Capital, an equity fund based in Johannesburg, South Africa, urged future leaders to define and commit to their individual purpose, asserting that true leadership stems not from position or title but from a clear sense of mission. "When I began my own journey, it wasn't glamorous at all.
I was a labourer in the Obuasi mines," the Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast (UCC) recounted, painting a vivid picture of his origins in one of Africa's oldest and largest gold mines, which has been a significant contributor to Ghana's economy since its establishment in 1897, yet its operational conditions for labourers were historically arduous. "But even then, I knew one thing: I wanted to matter.
I wanted to make a difference," the former Chief Executive Officer of AngloGold Ashanti said in his commencement address to the graduating class of the private university.
