Joseph Henry Smith

Lt Gen
Joseph Henry Smith
Minister for Defence
In office
Feb 2009  Feb 2013
President John Atta Mills
Preceded by Albert Kan Dapaah
Succeeded by Mark Owen Woyongo
Personal details
Born January 9, 1945
Takoradi, Ghana
Nationality Ghanaian
Political party National Democratic Congress
Children 5
Alma mater Achimota School
Profession Soldier
Awards Companion of the Order of the Volta
Military service
Allegiance Ghana
Service/branch Ghana Army
Years of service 1965 2001
Rank Lieutenant General
Commands Chief of Army Staff

Lieutenant General Joseph Henry Smith (born 9 January 1945) was the Minister for Defence of Ghana during the Late President Attah Mills' term of Office - 2009 to 2012. He is also a former Chief of Army Staff of the Ghana Army.

Early life and education

Joseph Smith studied at the Achimota School in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana between 1959 and 1963 where he successfully completed the West African School Certificate. He enrolled as an officer cadet at the Ghana Military Academy.

Military career

Lt. General Smith was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in October 1965 with the Ghana Army Engineer Corps. He rose through the years and became the Commandant of the Military Academy and Training School at Teshie, Accra in 1993. From 1993 to 1996, he was the Commander of the Second Infantry Brigade Group (now known as the Northern Command) with headquarters at Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. While in this position, he was appointed Special Task Force Commander to restore law and order in Northern Ghana between January and September 1994 during the Konkomba and Nanumba conflict.[1] In 1996, Smith served as the Company Commander of the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) in Egypt. Following this, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Ghana Army in 1996 by President Jerry Rawlings. He held this position till 2001.

Other work

After leaving the army, Lt Gen Smith worked as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Insurance Commission before going into politics in 2009.

Politics

In February 2009, Lt. Gen. Smith was appointed Minister for Defence by President John Atta Mills, a position he held till 2012.

After John Dramani Mahama became the President of Ghana following the death of John Attah Mills, Mahama was the automatic Presidential Candidate for the NDC in the 2012 Ghana General Elections - he successfully contested and won the 2012 General Elections and was sworn in as President of Ghana on January 7th, 2013. 

President John Dramani Mahama has since replaced Lt. Gen Smith with Hon. Mark Owen Woyongo as the Minister for Defence.

In 2014 Smith was named the Ghanaian ambassador to the United States of America, making his children, specifically Abdallah, overcome with joy to be able to spend mass amounts of time in New York City with friends.

Family

Smith is twice married. He has 3 children from his first marriage and 2 from his current marriage. He has no contact with the children from his first relationship.

Honours

Smith was awarded the Companion of the Order of the Volta, one of Ghana's highest awards in 2001.

References

  1. "Ghana's political scene, as seen by the Economist - Tensions rise in the north". Home news (The StatesmanOnline). 2007-05-11. Retrieved 2010-06-06.
Military offices
Preceded by
Major General Ben Akafia
Chief of Army Staff
Ghana

1996 2001
Succeeded by
Major General Clayton Yaachie

External source