Accra, Ghana — Ghana’s former First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, has passed away at the age of 76, following a brief illness, presidential spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu confirmed on Thursday morning.
Agyeman-Rawlings was the widow of Jerry John Rawlings, Ghana’s longest-serving leader, who led two coups before being twice elected president in multiparty elections.
She was also a prominent politician, women’s rights advocate, and founder of the 31st December Women’s Movement, aimed at empowering women and fostering community development. The movement was named after the date of her husband’s second coup in 1981.
Born in November 1948 in Cape Coast, she hailed from a middle-class family and later attended the prestigious Achimota School in Accra, where she met Jerry Rawlings.
Unlike her husband, she pursued higher education, studying art and textiles, while Rawlings joined the air force, eventually becoming a flight lieutenant. The couple married in 1977 and had four children, including Dr. Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, who is now an NDC Member of Parliament.
As first lady, Agyeman-Rawlings played a vital advisory role to her husband and became a leading figure in Ghanaian politics and social advocacy.
Her women’s movement, initially seen as aligned with the NDC, expanded opportunities for women nationwide, particularly in underserved regions, and influenced national legislation, including the 1989 law guaranteeing inheritance rights for women and children and gender equality provisions in the 1992 constitution.
She also pursued her own political ambitions, running unsuccessfully for the NDC’s presidential candidacy in 2012.
Following news of her death, her family formally notified former President John Mahama, who leads the National Democratic Congress, and tributes have flooded social media.
Ghana’s parliament has adjourned sessions in her honor as the nation prepares to mourn one of its most influential political figures and a tireless advocate for women’s empowerment.
