Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, Ghana’s former First Lady and women’s rights icon, has died at 76 after a brief illness, five years after her husband’s passing

Ghana’s former First Lady and a pioneering advocate for women’s empowerment, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, has died at the age of 76.

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She was the widow of Jerry John Rawlings, Ghana’s longest-serving leader, who passed away five years ago.

Rawlings led two coups before becoming an elected president under democratic rule, shaping much of modern Ghana’s political history.

According to presidential spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu, Mrs Agyeman-Rawlings died after a short illness on Thursday morning.

Her family later visited President John Mahama to formally inform him of her passing. Mahama leads the National Democratic Congress (NDC) — the party her late husband founded after taking power.

As Ghana’s First Lady, Nana Konadu left an indelible mark on social development.

She founded the 31st December Women’s Movement, named after the date of her husband’s second coup in 1981, to empower women economically and socially.

The organisation taught women entrepreneurial skills and supported community development, becoming one of the most influential grassroots movements in the country.

Born in November 1948 in Cape Coast, she hailed from a middle-class family and attended Achimota School in Accra, where she met her future husband.

While Jerry Rawlings joined the Air Force, she pursued higher education, studying art and textiles at university.

The couple married in 1977, and within a year, Rawlings seized power in his first coup at the age of 32 — with Konadu emerging as one of his closest advisers.

Elegant, outspoken and politically ambitious, she stood out as a symbol of modern Ghanaian womanhood.

Her influence extended beyond the presidential residence, and her advocacy led to the passage of a 1989 law guaranteeing inheritance rights for women and children — a milestone in Ghana’s legal and social reform.

In 2012, she sought to contest for the NDC’s presidential ticket, though her bid was unsuccessful.

Despite this, she remained active in national politics and continued her lifelong work to improve women’s welfare and representation.

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Tributes have poured in across Ghana and beyond, honouring her as a trailblazer, a cultural icon, and a pillar of progress who reshaped the role of women in public life.