Ambassador Nancy Q Sam among some stakeholders at the event
Ambassador Nancy Sam has been appointed Head Patron of the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS), the largest national students’ union in the country, with a membership of over 13.5 million.
Ambassador Nancy also serves Tourism Ambassador for Miami, USA, Vice President of ECOWAS Tourism Private Sector (COPITOUR) and President and Founder of Women in Tourism Ghana.
In 1999, she became the first tour operator in West Africa to take African students on exchange programmes to Disney World, Florida, USA. Today, many of those students have risen to become CEOs, business leaders, private entrepreneurs, Members of Parliament, doctors and public servants.
Her appointment as Head Patron of NUGS has therefore been described by many as well-deserved, given her long-standing commitment to youth development and tourism in Ghana and across West Africa.
At her recent appointment ceremony as Head Patron of NUGS, several dignitaries were in attendance, including the NUGS President and executives, the former Vice President of Sierra Leone, the Peruvian Ambassador to Ghana, the Country Manager of Qatar Airways Ghana, the CEO of the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board, and a former NUGS member who once served as Majority Whip of Parliament.
Also present was CEO and owner of five clinics in Miami, Florida Prinston Jean Glaude, who pledged to support NUGS exchange programmes for medical students by offering opportunities to gain modern technological exposure and practical experience in his hospitals abroad.
Ambassador Nancy Sam’s story, many say, reflects decades of dedication to tourism, youth empowerment, and national development.
Her appointment as Head Patron of NUGS is being celebrated as recognition of her enduring commitment to Ghana and its students.
In the early 2000s, before the United States Embassy relocated to its current premises in Cantonments, photographs of Ghanaian students who travelled to Disney World with Ambassador Nancy were displayed on the walls of the embassy for years.
Ambassador Nancy is widely regarded as one of Ghana’s dynamic and resilient women in the tourism sector. Over the years, she has remained a strong advocate for the private tourism industry in West Africa.
At one point, she was reportedly threatened at gunpoint to sign a mandate for the tourism private sector in West Africa but refused, insisting that it was not in the best interest of all stakeholders.
She has witnessed the transition from the Ghana Tourist Board to the present Ghana Tourism Authority and has seen more than eight to ten chief executives serve within that period.
She began her career at a young age, founding her own travel and tour company in the late 1990s and competing with established firms such as Black Beauty Tours, Akowaba Travels, and XYZ Tours.
A notable story often recounted about her leadership dates back about 25 years ago, when Ghana Airways operated the Accra New York route. At the time, the Ministry of Tourism, under Jeck Obechebi Lamtey, was launching the first Discovery Channel initiative in West Africa in Washington, D.C.
More than 60 Ghanaian delegates including the Minister of Tourism, ministry staff, government officials, tour operators and private sector representatives travelled on Ghana Airways to New York. Upon arrival at JFK Airport, their flight delay caused them to miss their connecting flight to Washington, D.C.
Ambassador Nancy, then popularly known as “Aunty Nancy,” urged the delegation not to panic.
In an era before mobile phones, she reportedly went into an office and began making calls. About 30 minutes later, she returned with news that alternative arrangements had been secured. Within 15 minutes, a special flight was ready to transport the delegation to Washington, D.C.
Airport officials handled their luggage, and the group boarded the aircraft directly from the tarmac. Upon arrival in Washington, a luxury bus with an escort was waiting to convey them to the ceremonial grounds. It is said that the President of Ghana had assumed they would not make it. When they arrived, there was surprise and relief.
Jeck Obechebi Lamtey later acknowledged her efforts publicly, asking the audience to applaud the young Nancy Sam for making their presence at the event possible.
