UPSA’s Otumfuo Centre for Traditional Leadership gains global recognition

The Otumfuo Centre for Traditional Leadership (OCTL) at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) is increasingly establishing itself as a global hub for traditional leadership education after welcoming two traditional leaders from Guyana to its prestigious chieftaincy programme. Their participation highlights the Centre’s growing international reputation and its role in reconnecting members of the African diaspora with their ancestral heritage through academic learning and cultural preservation. One of the participants, Guyanese chief Carlyle Franklin Sylvester Fraser, known by his stool name Apagyahene Nana Kwasi Ntow, described his journey to Ghana as the fulfilment of a centuries-old family dream. Tracing his ancestry to the Akan people taken from Ghana over 400 years ago, he said studying at the Centre allowed him to reconnect with his roots while deepening his understanding of traditional leadership. His story reflects the Centre’s broader mission of preserving culture, strengthening leadership, and promoting knowledge exchange among traditional authorities across the world. Speaking on the Centre’s growing impact, Director Dr Gerald Nyanyofio noted that attracting international traditional leaders demonstrates the increasing recognition of OCTL beyond Ghana’s borders. As the first centre of its kind in Ghana and the West African sub-region, OCTL continues to equip chiefs, queen mothers, and traditional council officials with academic knowledge and leadership skills that will enable them to preserve cultural heritage while driving sustainable development within their communities.