The Spelling Bee (commonly called The Spelling Bee Ghana or TSB) is an annual spelling bee held in Ghana since 2007.
The competition is run by a not-for-profit charity founded by Ghanaian Entrepreneur, CEO of the Young Educators Foundation, Eugenia Tachie-Menson, Programmes Manager, Salomé Dzakpasu, School Coordinator, Johnson Appiah and assisted by a team of educators, professionals, and volunteers.
The Spelling Bee, targeted at students between the ages of 7 – 13, seeks to build their capacity on the rudiments of spelling and English language usage.
The Spelling Bee is a franchise of Scripps National Spelling Bee run in the United States.
Since its inception, the winners of the competition have represented Ghana at the annual Scripps National Spelling Bee.
History Source:
The Spelling Bee began in 2007 with only six schools taking part. Maria Isabel Kubabom from SOS Herman Gmeiner School, Tema won the first edition by successfully spelling “Denigratory” and proceeded to the US to represent Ghana in the international competition.
Maria's appearance at the 80th Scripps National Spelling Bee made history as the first time an African participated in this international contest. For almost two decades, Ghana was the only African country participating in this prestigious international competition until 2025, where Nigeria also participated.
The Spelling Bee has evolved; for instance, since March 2020, at the start of the 16th edition, the 4-tiered spelling program has been conducted both virtually and in-person, with the Preliminaries, Quarter-Finals being done virtually and the Semi-Finals and National-Finals taking place in-person.
Originally with only a seat at the Scripps National Spelling Bee, since 2022, The Spelling Bee has secured two additional seats where two high-performing spellers (known in the competition's jargon as Yellow Bees) join the Champion for the Scripps Bee.
History-making Spellers Source: Maria Kubabom: 1st ever champion (2008) Philemon Awan: 1st Champion from Ho (2012) Afua Ansah: 1st speller from Ghana to make it to the Scripps Bee finals (2016) Shifa Amankwa-Gabbey: 1st champion from Kumasi and 1st Speller to appear on CNN’s African Voices (2018) Kwabena Darko-Asare: made it to the top 100 at the Scripps Bee (2019) N’Adom Darko-Asare: 1st speller to win the competition for two consecutive years (2022 & 2023)
Partners and Sponsors The Spelling Bee has been sponsored and supported over the years by Indomie Ghana, MTN Ghana, US Embassy in Ghana, USAID, MultiChoice Ghana, Kenya Airways, GOIL PLC, Ashesi University, Rufus Green Parks,https://www.rufusgreenparks.com/ Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Foundation, Citi 97.3 FM/Citi TV, Business and Financial Times, and many others.
List of winners +EditionYearWinnersChampionship wordSchoolLocation1st2008Maria Isabel Yirebatiya KubabomDenigratorySOS Herman Gmeinner SchoolTema, Greater Accra2nd2009Nana Adjoa Baiden-AmissahBombilationCrown Prince AcademyAccra, Greater Accra Region3rd2010Darren SackeyRouladeAchimota Basic SchoolAchimota, Greater Accra Region4th2011Jessica PenuVelocipedeAngel Specialist SchoolTema, Greater Accra5th2012Philemon Apiente AwanMaricultureHoly Spirit Catholic Preparatory SchoolHo, Volta Region6th2013Rohit SahijwaniJicamaDelhi Public School (DPS) International GhanaTema, Greater Accra Region7th2014Khushi JeswaniOlestraDelhi Public School (DPS) International GhanaTema, Greater Accra Region8th2015Vishal Mukesh ThakwaniXiphiasDelhi Public School (DPS) International GhanaTema, Greater Accra Region9th2016Afua Manukure AnsahZanniRidge Church SchoolAccra, Greater Accra Region10th2017Lily TugbahBaculiformSolidarity International SchoolAshaiman, Greater Accra Region11th2018Shifa Amankwa-GabbeyWamaraNagie's Angels Educational CentreKumasi, Ashanti Region12th2019Kwabena Adu Darko-AsareBaldenfreudeDelhi Public School (DPS) International GhanaTema, Greater Accra Region13th2020Nadia Chelpang MashoudEmpanoplyAlhassan Gbanzaba Memorial SchoolTamale, Northern Region14th2021Naa Koshie Manyo-PlangeAmaxophobiaRoman Ridge SchoolAccra, Greater Accra Region15th 2022N’Adom Darko-AsareBathypelagicDPS International GhanaTema, Greater Accra Region16th2023N’Adom Darko-AsareDouroucouliDPS International GhanaTema, Greater Accra Region17th2024Giovanni AdjeiGuijo Christ The King International SchoolAccra, Greater Accra Region 18th2025Giovanni AdjeiFruticoseChrist The King International SchoolAccra, Greater Accra Region 19th2026Eugene Osei MensahBreviloquentPeniel AcademyKumasi, Ashanti Region
See also
Spelling bee Scripps National Spelling Bee
References
External links
https://yefoundationghana.org/about-us/ https://thespellingbeegh.org/