Morgan State University has selected the head of a Ghanaian university and prolific businessman as the keynote speaker for the 147th Spring Commencement ceremony.

The university has tapped Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast Ghana Sir Samuel Esson Jonah, which MSU Pulse affirmed in their May 1 newsletter.

Jonah has received a multitude of awards and recognitions. Aside from being one of the wealthiest men in Ghana, Reputation Poll International listed him as one of the “100 Most Reputable Africans” in 2023. 

The formal announcement came a week after the decision was posted to the university’s website.

Jonah will speak at the 147th Spring undergraduate commencement ceremony scheduled for 10:00a.m. on May 18 in Hughes Memorial Stadium. That ceremony comes two days after Morgan will recognize its graduate and doctoral students in the Carl J. Murphy Fine Arts Center at 10:00a.m.

In the announcement, MSU President David Wilson said, “Sir Samuel Jonah is one the world’s most respected and acclaimed leaders, a titan of business whose legacy resonates across continents, and we’re honored to have him address our spring graduates.”

Jonah is a Ghanaian businessman, best known for his role as the former CEO of Ashanti Goldfields Company, a global gold mining company and one of the leading gold producers in Ghana.

In 2004, both CNN and Time Magazine named him among the world’s “Top 25 Most Influential Businesspeople” and he has accumulated various accolades both before and since. Queen Elizabeth II knighted Jonah in 2003. He was awarded Companion of the Order of the Star in Ghana — Ghana’s highest national award — in 2006, has received multiple honorary doctoral degrees, and won the Albert Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019.