Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, Ghana’s longest-serving First Lady and one of the country’s most influential women in politics and advocacy, has passed away.

She died on Thursday morning, October 23, 2025, at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital (Ridge Hospital) in Accra. She was 77 years old.

Born on November 17, 1948, in Cape Coast in Ghana’s Central Region, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings was a pioneering figure in Ghanaian politics, gender activism, and national development.

She was the wife of the late former President Jerry John Rawlings and served as First Lady across three political eras—from June 4 to September 24, 1979, under the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC); from December 31, 1981, to January 6, 1993, under the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC); and from January 7, 1993, to January 6, 2001, during her husband’s two civilian terms under the Fourth Republic.

Nana Konadu’s educational journey began at the Ghana International School, followed by Achimota School, where she met Jerry John Rawlings, her future husband. She pursued Art and Textiles at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), where she became an active student leader and served as the hall president of Africa Hall.

Her passion for education and design led her to the London College of Arts, where she obtained a diploma in interior design in 1975. She later earned a diploma in advanced personnel management from the Management Development and Productivity Institute (MDPI) in 1979 and a certificate in development from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) in 1991.

She also studied at Johns Hopkins University and the Institute for Policy Studies in Baltimore, USA, completing a fellowship programme in philanthropy and non-profit management.

As First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings was widely celebrated for her tireless advocacy for women’s rights and empowerment.

In 1982, she founded the 31st December Women’s Movement, a transformative organisation that empowered women across Ghana through education, health, and economic initiatives. Her leadership helped many Ghanaian women gain access to microfinance, entrepreneurship, and civic participation.

A trailblazer in Ghana’s political history, she became the first woman to run for President of Ghana in 2016.

Two years later, in 2018, she published her first book, “It Takes a Woman”, chronicling her experiences, challenges, and contributions to national development and gender equality.

In 2009, she was elected First Vice Chairperson of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), and in 2011, she made history again by challenging then-President John Evans Atta Mills for the NDC’s presidential candidacy — a bold move that underscored her courage and political conviction, even though she did not win the contest.

Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings will be remembered as a strong, visionary, and fearless leader whose influence extended far beyond Ghana’s borders. Her life was a symbol of resilience, empowerment, and unwavering service to the nation and its people.