The Governing Council of the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) on Wednesday, March 5, unanimously voted to appoint His Royal Majesty, Drolor Bosso Adamtey I, as the first Chancellor of the university.
This was at the university’s 54th regular meeting.
Known in private life as Dr Kingsley A. Fletcher, the Suapolor of the Se (Shai) Traditional Area and now Chancellor-designate is an author, historian, television Personality, International Advisor and guest lecturer and expert panellist in institutions of higher learning around the world.
He is the executive chairman of Fletcher Holdings Ltd, Ghana; Fletcher International Services, LLC, USA/Ghana; Royal One Company and Ghana and Asia Hong Kong Holdings in Hong Kong. He is also the board chairman of FirstBanc Financial Services, Ghana.
Unanimous recommendation
The appointment follows the unanimous recommendation of a search committee, an executive committee and the academic board of the university.
Dr Fletcher is the former Special Advisor to the assistant secretary general and director of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for Africa. He is also the founder and chairman of Integrity Business Network in Research, Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA; visionary founder of Life International and founder and chief executive officer of Life Community Services, Inc.
He is also the former chairman, TV3 Network, Ghana. Drolor Adamtey still serves as an advisor and mentor to global leaders, addressing life and leadership issues.
Dr Fletcher currently oversees Life for Africa, Inc, a non-profit humanitarian organisation contributing to the betterment of Africa via the four components of health care improvement, educational assistance, economic empowerment and community/social development.
To date, Life for Africa has allocated resources, including textbooks and academic supplies, medical equipment and supplies, ambulances and pharmaceuticals, to various African nations. He also oversees the operations of Life Community Services, Inc, assisting the elderly, engaging in mass distribution of food and clothing and the provision of transportation. He networks with other agencies similar in focus, providing consultation, staff support and funding where necessary.
Partnership with major technology firms
Drolor Bosso Adamtey has partnered major technology firms to bring investment to Ghana and West Africa in the areas of infrastructure, technology, training and educational opportunities.
In this partnership, he hosted an African Technology Conference in July 2008 in Accra. He has recruited distinguished world known technologists, scientists and engineers to provide expertise and leadership for technology-related projects to include developing hi-tech parks in West Africa.
He has also partnered some US universities with the aim of enhancing global education in Ghana and Africa. His global education initiative commenced on June 25, 2007 in which students from North Carolina Central University and Duke University participated in a summer exchange programme in Accra.
Dr Fletcher holds academic qualifications such as Doctor of Education, Doctor of Philosophy, Doctor of Theology and a Master’s in Theology. He has demonstrated a deep commitment to academic excellence, educational access, economic development and community outreach. He brings to UPSA an impressive record of extensive academic, administrative and leadership experience to lead Ghana’s business professional university.
When TheAfricanDream.net asked Drolor Bosso Adamtey I (the first) about his source of inspiration when beginning his work, he responded: “The words and actions of my parents; pointing me to the future greatly inspired me. Additionally, I am inspired when I see the vulnerable population, especially those marginalized and poor being denied their fundamental human rights.”
Drolor Bosso Adamtey I, formerly known as Dr. Kingsley Fletcher, is a Ghana-born public speaker who mentors global leaders, a humanitarian, an entrepreneur, and preacher of the Gospel who has traveled the world sharing his spiritual thoughts and ideas that uplift humanity.
Drolor Bosso Adamtey I in photo courtesy KingAdamtey.com
He continued his phone interview with TheAfricanDream.net from his North Carolina (NC) base in the United States (US) by finishing his answer to what inspires him: “It naturally comes to me to be of help to such people, you know it’s like an innate drive that propels me to act with compassion. This also encourages me to give my very best. Above all, I am inspired by seeing possibilities in every circumstance, as I see every opposition as an opportunity and every resistance as a reset.”
In case you’re wondering what the location of the Kingdom he rules is, it is the traditional area in the Dangme West District of Ghana, in West Africa where he bears the traditional title “Drolor” and the royal name “Bosso Adamtey I.” He is also King of Kordiabe-Madaam in the Shai OsudokuDistrict of Ghana.
The Genesis and how this King survived a bullying school-teacher
“From my childhood experience as a young boy, I vividly recall this memory of a teacher I had named Mr. P. Abeka who always approached me with words of negativity and discouragement. Yes as a young child with little experience, this negative attitude of my teacher who was supposed to be seeking my well-being did have a harsh impact on. Despite my age, I somehow realized that listening to Mr. Abeka wasn’t going to help me, hence I refused all he said.”
“It was at this point that I discovered no one had the power to determine my future, a realization that also opened my eyes to the fact that the power to prevent him from breaking my spirit solely rested in me. I concluded that every human could do what they are sent here for if only they apply themselves in truth and honesty. It was not so long after this experience that I vowed to make every young person realize that they had the strength to do what they wanted to do irrespective of the opinion of others.”
This new-found positive attitude towards life as a young person followed Drolor Bosso Adamtey I into his teens through his young adulthood, to where he is now as a man. Funny enough, when we asked whether he could recall other experiences from his past that shoved him so hard to the wall that he wanted to give up, he laughed briefly and simply said, “I do not remember ever in my life wanting to quit!”
Quitting has never been an option for this fighter, but human as he is, he quickly confirmed that like everyone he too has had tough and trying times. At the moment, one of his favorite challenges is the mobilization of people for a common course on how to change lives and contribute to society. “As a leader sometimes, it gets difficult to have people sold out to a noble vision, but such challenges keep me up at night and through the spirit of God enables me to come up with ways around them — I learn to grow through my storms.”
“Today people and situations like Mr. Abeka that tried to break me have done the exact opposite by strengthening me. I am the visionary and trendsetting leader you see me as today because I have built passion around adversity and a burning desire to bring positive changes to lives. I have the grace to forecast trends and mobilize people for action. Because of my purposeful intent and consistency, I have built my blessing to discern and act wisely. I leave a very profound and long-lasting impact on those who encounter me.” — Drolor Bosso Adamtey I.
A message to Africa amid-COVID-19 from this global thought-leader
Asked what Africa could learn to prepare for disasters like the COVID-19 pandemic, His Majesty admitted the problem we have now is lack of preparedness on the part of the health system, he also believed even some developed countries are in the same boat with first world countries on this particular issue.
“Africa needs to strengthen our health system to be able to provide emergency response in an event like this. I would want to commend the government of Ghana for investing in local companies to produce Personal Protective Equipment in fighting COVID-19. I believe this gesture should continue even after the pandemic, as a show of support for local industries. An act of this nature would boost the economy and reduce the rate of unemployment.”
One of the king’s spiritual mandates includes bringing all the Se People in the Diaspora, throughout Africa, Europe, North & South America, the Caribbean, and Central America, back home to their ancestral lineage. He feels this effort would encourage them to also contribute to the development of Ghana as a country and Africa as a continent.
It is with much excitement that the king informed Africans everywhere and the world in general that come 2021, the Global Leadership Centre (GLC) in Durham, NC will be launched. He afterwards took some time to also talk about Ghana’s Drolor Centre for Strategic Leadership (DCSL) with TheAfricanDream.net during this interview.
DCSL exists to nurture a global community of leaders who are willing to make a difference with their presence by creating and delivering value that go beyond their time and/or geographical boundaries. Leaders who understand the consequences of their actions and inactions on current and future generations and can act ethically in such context.
“GLC is a world class executive leadership institute designed to nurture a global community of leaders to help develop strategies to address critical long-standing and emerging issues for this century and beyond,” said the king who asked that we visit his official website at www.KingAdamtey.com for more information about these institutions.
Giving back and the way forward
2020 has presented rather unusual times to the world, but hard times or mishaps are inevitable. His Majesty believes it is therefore important that we take courage and stand tall, never giving up on our visions or allowing tough times to overtake us because it always works out well in the end.
“We need to seize the moment and see it as life’s way of giving us the opportunity to re-strategize to come back stronger. Also, what we know as normal has changed hence we have to now embrace a new normal, creating new systems and structures to be more effective. We must however in the process not forget our cultures and customs, especially the goodness in them that continually shape us as upright people,” advised the king.
Part of the vision of Drolor Bosso Adamtey I as an educator, minister, and humanitarian is to eternally stay committed to the Se Kingdom as well as the Ga-Dangme people of Ghana through restoring their historical, traditional, and cultural values. He emphasized this objective when he said “I’m involved in improving health care, creating sustainable education programs and job opportunities for the youth. Also, I am mobilizing resources among my people (Se and the Greater Ga-Dangme) and training new leaders to sustain our on-going development.“
“There is a coming together of the traditional leadership, the Elders and the whole youth of Se and Ga-Dangme in general, in response to the awakening of our restoring to our place in history and our contribution to the development of Ghana,” the king professed. He acknowledged that “this coming together is a result of a growing awakening that is stirring within the African wherever he or she may be now — Africa shall as a continent soon maintain her God-given rightful place to restore balance within humanity.”
The formalities to establish the Caribbean Maritime University (CMU) were completed during the entity’s inaugural Charter Day ceremony, held at the National Arena in Kingston on September 28.
These included the installation of the Suapolor of the Shai Traditional Area of Ghana, His Royal Majesty Drolor Bosso Adamtey I, as Chancellor; and Professors Fritz Pinnock and Ibrahim Ajagunna as President and Deputy President, respectively.
Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen; Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness; and Barbados Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Freundel Stuart, headed the list of officials and guests attending the ceremony, which coincided with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) commemoration of World Maritime Day, under the theme ‘Connecting Ships, Ports and People’.
Mr. Holness, who delivered the keynote address, said the CMU’s advent represents a “truly positive transformation” and is a historic moment in Jamaica’s and the region’s education landscape.
Citing the institution as the first specialised public university and the only International Maritime Organization (IMO)-recognised maritime education and training provider in the English-speaking Caribbean, the Prime Minister said its accreditation provides it with greater leverage to foster the necessary relationships and partnerships, access to global grant funding and expansion of research and development, which are necessary to offer cutting-edge training.
He reiterated the Administration’s commitment to invest in the CMU in order to accommodate the “growing appetite” for the institution’s programmes and further cement its role as a key contributor to Jamaica’s growth and development.
To this end, he said the Government is looking to establish a “full and permanent” campus, which would likely be in St. Thomas, “where we have already established various projects, such as a new town centre and new highway construction”.
Mr. Holness said based on the institution’s track record of achievements since its establishment in 1980, “I am confident that the CMU will continue, not only to be Jamaica’s and the Caribbean’s leading source of talent and ideas in the areas of logistics and maritime technology, but will also be seen as one of the world’s best institutions for maritime training, and, therefore, a great export product”.
In his remarks, Prime Minister Stuart, who noted that Barbadians have benefited from training opportunities offered at the CMU, said he envisages the university “becoming the institution of choice for higher learning, training, research and consultation in the area of maritime matters in the western hemisphere”.
Education, Youth and Information Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, who read the Governor-General Proclamation for the CMU’s Charter, described the institution as “a living testimony that our positive collective will (in the pursuit of excellence) is stronger than any force that might seek to hinder progress”.
For his part, Transport and Mining Minister, Hon. Mike Henry, commended the CMU’s management and staff, partners and stakeholders, “who have played an extremely key role in getting us to this milestone”.
Science, Energy and Technology Minister, Dr. the Hon. Andrew Wheatley said the CMU’s accreditation is a “fitting acknowledgement” of the role being played by the institution, “which is at the centre of excellence when it comes to tertiary education related to maritime affairs”.
In his remarks, the newly installed Chancellor, Drolor Bosso Adamtey I welcomed the opportunity extended to him to serve in that capacity and gave an undertaking “to bring my total heart, commitment, dedication and vision of expanding the… CMU into a major success story”.
“I’m also going to extend my expertise, my experience and my contacts to make sure that we raise the bar and create within this region a brand of education which is second to none,” he added.
Delivering his inaugural address as President, Professor Pinnock described the CMU’s establishment as a “revolution in the tertiary education and training landscape in Jamaica and across the region”.
He noted that the institution has “disrupted the pecking order” of tertiary education selection over the last 10 years, pointing out that “we have moved from being a mere option to topping the table as the institution of choice in Jamaica and the region”.
The ceremony saw the conferment of two honorary Doctor of Science degrees on two of the CMU’s longstanding partners, Ishmael Robertson of Jamaica and Barbadian, Everton Walters.
The Chancellor of the University of Professional Studies, Accra, (UPSA), Nene Drolor Bosso Adamtey, has bemoaned the high rate at which people travel out of the country to seek higher education in Europe and the United States.
He has therefore challenged the youth to access equally better institutions in the country for higher education and create their own Ghanaian dream.
Nene Drolor Adamtey said this when he launched the “Drolor Scholarship Scheme” in Accra.
Accra, March 11, GNA – Drolor Bosso Adamtey I, the Chancellor of the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) has launched the Drolor Scholarship Scheme for 10 brilliant but needy students to pursue higher education at the university annually.
Nine out of the 10 scholarships would be awarded to students from the Se Traditional Area and a floating one for the most brilliant student from the wider Ga-Dangme area.
The Drolor Scholarship Scheme Board is chaired by Drolor Bosso Adamtey I, with members including Professor Goski Alabi, Dr Mustapha M. Mustapha, Dr Samuel Offei, Dr Albert Puni and Mr Edward D. Ansong.
Presenting a cheque for $10,000 for the commencement of the Scholarship Scheme, which is under the auspices of the Drolor Educational Foundation, Drolor Adamtey said the project aimed at helping to build the human resource base of the Se Traditional Area as well as the wider Ga-Dangme.
Known in private life as Dr Kingsley A. Fletcher, Drolor Adamtey said he was committed to ensuring the success the scholarship scheme and the welfare of the people of the Se Traditional Area.Prof Joshua Alabi, the Vice Chancellor of the UPSA, lauded Drolor Adamtey for his commitment and dedication towards the development of the university.
A large crowd assembles in Ghana. Not a voice interrupts as a familiar national figure graces the podium.
As he begins to debunk false hysterical myths about Africa, he also introduces his next innovative plan to help return the continent to global prominence.
With a lifetime of international work that has spanned over 30 years, Dr. Kingsley Fletcher believes that he has now arrived at the pinnacle of properly executing his passions to reform Africa for the better.
“Africa needs partnerships, not handouts…and I know that we are very capable of doing the former,” Fletcher says about returning the region back to a time when it did not lean so heavily on international assistance. “Unlike many parts of the world, Africa has been internally faced with a lot of health, social, and financial setbacks that are not just attributed solely to our past imperialism or colonialism – but poor current government leadership and a lack of investment in innovation.”
For Fletcher, also known as Drolor Bosso Adamtey I in his native homeland, his knowledge and expertise in helping to eradicate many of the issues Africa faces came from traveling abroad and learning of the endless possibilities.
Growing up in the greater region of Accra, Ghana from a family of prestigious traditional leaders, a teenage Fletcher would first set off to travel, study, and do international missionary work before eventually accepting his royal responsibility. “I knew that the time would come when I would ultimately become the Suapolor of my Se (Shai) Traditional Area, but I first wanted to learn the world my nation and my people would be facing.”
In the early 1980s, after studying in England and doing missionary work in Africa, he would eventually head to the United States where he would do faith dialogue in North Carolina. This would lead to him founding Life International, a multicultural ministry that represents over 60 nations. It would be during this time that he would meet his wife and start a family that would eventually lead to raising two now grown-up daughters.
“My family brings me great joy and the key to keeping our balance between work and care is supporting each other along the way,” Fletcher says of his life lessons to keeping an ambitious career and personal life maintained.
Throughout the decades, Dr. Kingsley Fletcher’s quest to exploring the world and applying those experiences to improving the quality of life for Africans all over the continent would be immersive. He would go on to be the Chairman of First Group, FirstBanc Financial Services in Ghana and later the former Chairman of Ghana’s largest private television station, TV3 Network.
And while his lucrative entrepreneurial empire would lead to him learning a handful of languages, releasing publications, and building relationships and connections that would inform and advise leaders from Africa, Asian, and North America – Fletcher realized that his influence could also be more effective for another group of people, the youth.
“As I began to grow and build with many leaders and businessman around the world, I soon realized one of Africa’s major mistakes…we don’t spend much time investing in our future, the children,” Fletcher said of what lead to him shifting gears in the second half of his advocacy work. “I realized that there needed to be a major paradigm shift in how the region sustains – individual success is not enough to influence the future…youth development would be the ultimate way.”
After having served his term as the Special Advisor to the Assistant Secretary General and Director of the United Nations Development Program-Africa, Fletcher would later become the founder of Life For Africa, a non-profit humanitarian organization dedicated to implementing programs in health care, education, economic empowerment, and community/society building. It would be in this moment that he realizes a strength and opportunity within himself that would become a great asset in his advocacy, the power of education.
“Education is what is going to save Africa above anything else, not international aide and constant dependence, but liberating ourselves by informing one another,” Fletcher says on his newfound pursuits. After recently receiving his Doctorate degree in Education with a concentration in Social Justice from the University of Massachusetts, Dr. Fletcher would have the honor of being the first Chancellor of University of Professional Studies Accra, Ghana, one of the fastest public universities in Africa.
It would be in this moment where he would have the honor of speaking to that large crowd in Ghana as he launches his brand new Drolor Center for Strategic Leadership, a resource program facility dedicated to educating and investing in leadership development for young professionals.
“Africa is truly the last frontier,” he tells the crowd of young aspiring business leaders, activists, and scholars. “Strong investment in leadership for our youth will give them what it takes to contribute to global development and make a lasting impact on the world.”
After recently receiving the top leadership prize at the West African Nobles Conference, Fletcher feels that now in his mid-fifties he has accomplished a lot that has inspired him to keep going.
“The accolades and honors are a blessing, but my work is only going to continue to grow from here,” Fletcher says of not stopping on his advocacy.
As his renowned presence begins to make a profound impact in Africa, Fletcher’s current public and motivational speaking engagements also has his attention focused on his black brothers and sisters in the West. His dual citizenship allows him to empathize with the current conditions and events in Black America, while also seeing this as an opportunity to forge a stronger cross-continental bond.
“With all that is affecting blacks across the diaspora, now more than ever is a time where we should be supporting each other all around… we are all in this together and connecting our roots and really knowing each other again will be the solution,” Fletcher says.
At a time when society needs it the most, Dr. Kingsley Fletcher proves himself to be a man committed to not only challenging society’s misconceptions on Africa’s potential, but a leader personally invested in the well-needed restoration of black relations across the globe.
The University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) has inaugurated a Centre of Excellence at a leadership symposium that deliberated on the causes of leadership deficit on the African continent. The Centre, Drolor Centre for Strategic Leadership (DCSL), was named after the Chancellor of the University, HRM Drolor Bosso Adamtey 1, who is the Centre’s sole benefactor.
Giving a backgroound to the establishment of the Centre, Prof. Goski Alabi, Dean of the Graduate School of the University, noted that even though Africa is well
endowed with natural resources,it has the highest proportion of poor countries in the world. “The question often asked therefore is why should a continent blessed with such abundant resources be so underdeveloped and characterised with marked poverty?”
”Prof. Mrs. Alabi, said that poverty has often been attributed to corruption, greed, dictatorship,military coups, incompetent leadership, and mismanagement. “These ineffective leadershippractices are believed to undermine Africa’s governance systems, development and culture. Africa therefore needs to change this trend, and that is partly why we are establishing the DCSL,which will provide executives, politicians and senior managers with leadership skills for leadingchange and making a difference in the 21st century.” She said.
HRM Drolor Bosso Adamtey 1, who is also the Chair of the Centre, said the vision of DCSL is to be a Centre of Excellence for high level and executive leadership development in Africa for the continent’s accelerated development.
Launching the Centre, the Chancellor stated that the DCSL will work towards building the capacities of existing leaders in business, politics, religion and academia, as well as groom the next generation of ethical leaders with the requisite social capital, leadership skills andcompetences for partnerships, networks, and economic development of the continent.
In addition, the Centre will provide a platform for case sharing on the continent through leadership conferences, symposia, workshops and research seminars.
Drolor Bosso Adamtey 1 said Africa has a great potential and will only be able to drive its owndevelopment agenda if it nurtures its youth to believe in themselves. “The Drolor Centre forStrategic Leadership is paving the way for this.” He said.
Speakers at the symposium included, Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante, Chairman, National PeaceCouncil, who spoke on whether Ghana had confidence in the African Union (AU) in the area of strategic leadership; Prof. Agyemang Badu Akosa, a Professor of Pathology at the University of Ghana Medical School and a leading politician, gave a thought-provoking presentation on how the AU should facilitate its relationship with African leadership in terms of security, health and wealth creation or poverty reduction; H.E. Ademola Oluseyi Onafowokan, Nigerian High Commissioner, talked on the relevance of the Mo Ibrahim Award; and Fred Awaah, the Secretary General of the All Africa Students’ Union, discussed how African countries can demonstrate strategic leadership.
There was the general consensus among all speakers that Ghana, and indeed Africa lacked strategic leaders to meaningfully translate its natural resources to wealth creation. “The establishment of the DCSL could not have come at a better time to contribute to the training of strategic leaders in Ghana and Africa,” concluded Rev. Prof Asante.
His Majesty Drolor’s provoking and inspiring speech to the World Public Forum centered on “Africa Needs Partnership, Not Hand-outs.“He stressed that the continent is well aware of her present challenges and problems such as high mortality rates, malnutrition, labor migration, and “brain drain” and is prepared to take leadership in finding lasting solutions. He reminded forum delegates that Africa continues to contribute immensely to the world through her natural resources, often without equal return. Consequently, Africa should not be treated as a charity case, always with her hands out, but as an equal partner. The world powers should take Africa seriously and negotiate fairly with her, considering the future of African citizens. His Majesty proposed a collaborative effort where there is mutual respect and accountability, resulting in a win-win situation and most importantly, measurable results. In light of a global economic crisis whose impact has been amplified in Africa, he called for a greater sense of commitment to task and follow-through rather than promises with good intentions.
His Majesty is The SUAPOLOR of the Se (Shai) Traditional Area in Ghana, West Africa. A strong advocate for peace, progress and development, he is also an international adviser, author, humanitarian, and minister. His counsel, wisdom, spiritual insight and leadership are often sought after by global leaders. He is the Founder and Chairman of Life for Africa. His Majesty holds doctorates in Philosophy and Theology and is currently pursuing a doctorate in Social Justice Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He is a member of the distinguished University of Oxford Round Table.
