I had no one to look up to growing up – Deputy CEO, Ghana Association of Bankers

More often than not, it is believed that successful people and leaders in the various industries and sectors of the country’s economy were born with silver spoons in their mouths and received instructions from astute leaders in the sector of their interest.
But that was not the same for the Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Association of Bankers, John Awuah, who did not see his underprivileged background as a disadvantage but used it as a springboard to achieve greater heights.
John Awuah made this revelation in an interview with Y 107.9 FM’s Rev Erskine on the Myd Morning radio show.
The banker who had illiterate parents and grew up in a household where he was the first person to attend a Senior High School (SHS) and go to the university noted that under such circumstances, “there was generally no person you would find to look up to” regardless of having the brains for numbers.
He noted that his love for numbers and challenges was what propelled him to get to the pinnacle in his career regardless of never having a professional to look up to and guide him growing up.
“Every now and then, a teacher will become my inspiration but I didn’t have any professional or big man to look up to. It was more of survival and not a professional to look up to per say.”
When asked if he ever dreamt of doing something other than banking growing up, he admitted that as children, “we all say the things we want to be without knowing the direction we are going. But I knew I couldn’t become a doctor because science was not my friend”, he stated jovially.
The Ghana Association of Bankers (GAB) appointed Mr John Awuah as Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the association earlier this year and the young banker is expected to take over from the current Chief Executive Officer, preparing to retire later in 2020.