Sylvester Mensah holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom (UK), a BSc in Administration from the University of Ghana Business School, a Diploma in Political Economy from Cottbus Political College in Germany and a Diploma in Global Health from the Berkeley School of Public Health in the University of California USA.
He is a Fellow of the Institute of Business Consulting – UK, and serves on a number of public and private boards in Ghana. He holds numerous certificates in competency courses and is an alumnus of the Harvard University School of Public Health where he completed a number of competency courses. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation. He is also an Honorary Citizen of Kansas and New Orleans cities in the USA. His competence as a lecturer, finance professional, banker, fund manager, politician, strategic management expert, social worker, and an international social health insurance technocrat underscore his professional and occupational versatility, demonstrated throughout his working life. He is the author of a popular bestselling book – ” In the shadows of politics” – and has a number of academic publications to his credit.
He served a full term in Parliament for the Dadekotopon constituency in the Greater Accra Region from 1997 to 2001. He served as the Chief Executive of the National Health Insurance Authority from 2009 to 2015 and is credited with far-reaching organisational restructuring, innovation and initiatives in reforming Ghana’s NHIA. He is an international speaker and resource person on financial risk protection against healthcare delivery and made over 50 local and international technical presentation in the USA, UK, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Italy, South Africa, among others. He also served as a key resource person for the African Development Bank in Tunisia and Zambia where he led in introducing a preferred health insurance model for the African Region. His presentations have covered health insurance design, redesign, implementation, policy initiatives, financing and risk management strategies among others.
Under his stewardship the NHIA emerged on the international healthcare landscape as a model for financial risk protection, earning him and Ghana’s NHIA a United Nations/WHO/World Bank award for Excellence and Leadership in health insurance implementation – an award he received in Geneva, Switzerland in November, 2010. He was inducted into the West African Nobles Forum as an eminent West African in 2011, and received many other awards including the West African Regional Magazine Achievers award in 2012, the African Price for Excellence and leadership in Corporate Governance by the Global Centre for Transformational Leadership – 2013. In 2014 Imani Ghana conferred on him, the best Chief Executive in Ghana award with the NHIA receiving the leading public institution award. Same year he received the outstanding performance and transformational leadership award conferred by the West African Regional Magazine 2014 Business and leadership awards which was delivered in Brussels – Belgium. He is also the recipient of the favourite son of the Land award by the Abese Quarter of the La Traditional Council.
Sylvester Mensah is an original member of the NDC with his roots as a foot soldier during the revolutionary period. He was the first Greater Accra Region Youth organiser of the NDC in 1992. He became the party Regional secretary in 1994 through to 2001. He contested for the party General Secretary in 2005 and lost to General Mosquito – Asiedu Nketia. He is currently a member of the council of elders of the party in the Greater Accra Region and the chairman of the finance committee of the party in the Greater Accra region. In the last elections he was the Regional campaign coordinator.
His academic background and work experiences are rich and varied. He is considered an excellent manager, results-oriented consensus builder, a firm and fair gentlemen. He is the only government official to have been publicly investigated in what is described as a conspiracy and an inside job intended to bring down his popularity but scaled through unscathed and finally exonerated. His integrity and profile is unmatched by his contemporaries.
Sylvester is hardworking and affable. His personal skills, shaped by years of tireless contribution to constituency, regional and national party efforts, are described by many as outstanding. His humility and. general demeanour is exceedingly pleasant. Above all, he is an excellent public speaker.
Born on the 28th day of December 1963, his biological parents are from La, in the Greater Accra Region and Keta, in the Volta Region.