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Ghana’s Embassy in Washington D.C. will officially reopen on Thursday, May 29, 2025, following a brief closure sparked by a major corruption scandal involving fraudulent IT operations.
The decision to reopen comes just days after Foreign Affairs Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, ordered the temporary shutdown to facilitate investigations and restructuring of the diplomatic mission.
At the center of the scandal is Fred Kwarteng, a locally hired IT staffer who created an unauthorized website link that redirected visa and passport applicants to his private firm, Ghana Travel Consultants (GTC). Applicants were charged unapproved fees between $29.75 and $60, which were funneled into his personal account. The fraudulent scheme is believed to have operated undetected since 2017.
A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, May 27, confirmed that a new team of diplomats, led by a senior official, has been deployed to the U.S. capital to restore operations and integrity to the mission. Additionally, a new IT team is reconfiguring the Embassy’s website and removing all unauthorized links.
The Ministry assured the public that measures are in place to clear the backlog of services and apologized for the inconvenience caused by the closure. The corruption case has been referred to the Auditor-General and Attorney-General for further investigation and possible sanctions.
