“I stumbled into politics”: Gender Minister reflects on her unplanned political journey

Minister for Gender and Social Protection, Dr. Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, has shared how her deep involvement in church and community work unexpectedly led her into politics. The 49-year-old, who holds a PhD from the University of Ghana, opened up about her journey during an interview on JoyNews Personality Profile.

She described her path to public office as unplanned. “If it’s not divine orchestration, then I’d say I stumbled upon it,” she said. “This wasn’t something I planned for. People who knew me before are often surprised to see me in politics; they never associated me with it.”

Originally from Nungua, Dr. Naa Momo began her political journey in 2000 as an assemblywoman. She later became the presiding member of the Krowor Municipal Assembly. Though she lost her first parliamentary bid in 2016 to Elizabeth Afoley Quaye of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), she returned in 2020 on the National Democratic Congress (NDC) ticket and won. She successfully retained her seat in 2024 and was appointed as Minister for Gender and Social Protection.

Dr. Naa Momo explained that her passion for service started with her church activities at the Assemblies of God and later through charity work with civil society groups. “Through my charitable work with fishmongers, they eventually pushed me into politics,” she said. “I was teaching them about leadership through a model training programme when the opportunity to serve as a chief executive arose.”

She recalled the moment when members of her community urged her to apply what she was teaching. “They said, ‘You’ve been teaching us we can start from the local government level; now here’s your chance.’ It completely threw me off guard,” she said.

Although she faced early resistance, including criticism that she wasn’t political enough, she persisted. “I took it in good faith… When the opportunity came to serve as a government appointee, I was encouraged to contest as presiding member. By God’s grace, I won. That’s when my political journey began.”

Dr. Naa Momo’s story highlights how faith, service, and encouragement from the community can lead to unexpected leadership roles even for someone who never imagined a life in politics.