GHANA ELECTION: President Mahama Accepts Defeat

Following the recently concluded elections in Ghana, PresidentJohn Mahamahas conceded to opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo, the governing NDC party has told the BBC.

Mr Akufo-Addo tweeted that the president had phoned him to congratulate him on his election win.
A BBC correspondent in the capital Accra says celebrations are breaking out as people react to the news.

It is the first election defeat for a sitting president since Ghana returned to multi-party democracy in 1992.

Ghana's Electoral Commission (EC) declared Mr Akufo-Addo the winner, with 53.85% of the votes, while Mr Mahama took 44.40%, reports the BBC's Akwasi Sarpong at the scene.
Turnout was more than 68%.

"It's my duty to declare Nana Akufo-Addo as President-elect of the Republic of Ghana," Charlotte Osei, the commission's chairwoman told media at its headquarters in Accra.

It is the second time in the space of a week that a West African president has conceded to an opposition candidate, following the shock defeat of President Yahya Jammeh in The Gambia's elections.
Electoral victory has come at the third attempt for Mr Akufo-Addo, a 72-year-old lawyer, who has promised to industrialise the country and build factories in each of Ghana's 216 districts.