Former Board Chairman of the Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL), Paul Adom-Otchere, has disclosed that during his tenure, the GACL board considered renaming Kotoka International Airport after former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, citing the importance of global branding at international airports.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile programme on Saturday, February 7, Mr Adom-Otchere said the idea emerged from internal discussions about how Ghana’s principal aviation gateway should project the country’s image to the world.

“I have to make a confession here,” he told the programme. “When I was on the board of the Ghana Airports Company, it occurred to us. We thought about it and said, okay, when you arrive at any airport in the world, the brand you are talking about is very important.”

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According to him, while the legacy of Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, remains monumental, the board explored whether another Ghanaian figure with exceptional global recognition could better serve the country’s international branding aspirations.

“Nkrumah is great,” Mr Adom-Otchere said. “Because of all of these things, why don’t we then call the airport Kofi Annan?”

He explained that the late Kofi Annan stood out as a uniquely distinguished Ghanaian on the world stage, having served as Secretary-General of the United Nations — a position no other Ghanaian has held.

“Apart from Ghanaian presidents and the heroics of Nkrumah, no Ghanaian has risen to the international level of United Nations Secretary-General,” he noted. “Kofi Annan is the first, so we thought so.”

Mr Adom-Otchere’s comments come amid renewed national debate over the name of Kotoka International Airport.

The discussion was reignited following a proposal by the Majority Leader in Parliament to rename the facility Accra International Airport. The Minority Leader has argued that General Emmanuel Kotoka’s legacy is controversial due to his involvement in the 1966 military coup that overthrew Dr Nkrumah.

The proposal has generated significant political disagreement, with supporters framing it as a necessary step to address historical injustices, while critics warn that reopening such debates risks deepening political divisions.

Beyond the Majority Leader’s proposal, other voices have suggested that if the airport is to be renamed, it should honour a prominent Ga traditional leader or personality, citing the indigenous custodianship of the land on which the airport is located.

Mr Adom-Otchere revealed that the Kofi Annan proposal was eventually presented to former President Nana Akufo-Addo but did not gain traction due to concerns about national priorities at the time.

“We went to Akufo-Addo with it,” he recalled. “He was concerned that, look, you have to build an airport. You haven’t finished Kumasi Airport — when are you finishing? At that time, Sunyani Airport was not operational. We hadn’t done Tamale Airport.”

According to Mr Adom-Otchere, the former President questioned the rationale behind focusing on renaming rather than completing critical airport infrastructure projects across the country.

“You want to go and change the name of the airport — for what?” he quoted the President as asking.

He added that the response left members of the board both surprised and amused. “We were all bemused, and we laughed about it,” he said.