Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum is the former Minister of Education
Former Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, has opened up about his long and emotional journey to parenthood, disclosing that it took 14 years after marriage for him and his wife to have a child.
Speaking in an interview with Delay on January 24, 2026, Dr Adutwum recounted how he met his wife while living in the United States.
According to him, he was in his early 30s and working as a teacher, while his wife was a nurse at the time.
“I met my wife in America and I was in my early 30s. I was a teacher then and she was a nurse. We got married a year after we met,” he said.
Dr Adutwum explained that after marriage, they struggled for many years to conceive, a situation that deeply affected his wife emotionally.
“It took a long time for us to have a child after marriage. It took us 14 years of waiting to get our own child,” he stated.
He recalled painful moments in church when pastors would ask couples seeking children to come forward for prayers.
“There were times when we would go to church and the pastor would call for those who needed children to come forward and my wife would always be there crying. I could watch her cry and it was sad because there was nothing I could do,” he narrated.
Despite the emotional toll, Dr Adutwum said he tried not to burden his wife with his own pain, even though he worked closely with children as a teacher and church worker.
“I have always worked with children and the sad part was, when it’s Father’s Day, the children would present cards, wishing me and I would be reminded of how it would be if I had my biological child,” he said.
He continued, “I was dealing with children in both schools and church and I was happy about that. I didn’t want to put pressure on my wife because if she were to see my emotional condition at the time, it would be very difficult for her to handle.”
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He shared that he found some comfort in impacting the lives of many children through education.
“I didn’t have much but there were many children that I realised I was having an impact on since I’ve built schools and helped children so the impact on them was tremendous,” he noted.
Dr Adutwum further revealed that doctors had once told them that having a biological child would not be possible due to a medical condition his wife had developed.
“My prayer all the time was for God to have mercy on us, but a doctor had told us that having a child wouldn’t be possible. My wife had a condition and it wasn’t treated well so before they realised, her womb had damaged. I remember that day was a very difficult one for us after the doctor told us we wouldn’t be parents,” he disclosed.
Although he was initially in denial, he said he eventually accepted the situation and continued to pray for God’s intervention.
In a surprising turn of events, Dr Adutwum explained that their breakthrough came after they decided to host a child who needed accommodation in the United States.
“There was a circumstance God used to bless us with our child. One day, I discovered online that there was a child who needed someone to host him in America. After reading his profile, I realised he was an only child of his parents.
“I told my wife about it and she accepted. The first year the child moved in with us, that was when my wife got pregnant,” he recounted.
He said the child became a great help to the family, and eventually, his wife gave birth to a son.
“He became a great help to us, then my wife finally gave birth to a son,” he added.
FG/AM
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