End of an Era: Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, Ghana’s Iconic First Lady, Dies at 76

Ghana is mourning the passing of Former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, who died on Thursday, October 23, 2025, at the Ridge Hospital in Accra after a short illness. She was 76 years old.

Nana Konadu, the widow of the late former President Jerry John Rawlings, was one of Ghana’s most influential women, a trailblazer in politics, gender advocacy, and social development. Her passing marks the end of an era in Ghana’s post-independence political and social history.

Born on 17 November 1948 in Cape Coast, Nana Konadu Agyeman was educated at Achimota School and later earned a degree in Art and Textiles from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).

She married Jerry John Rawlings in 1977 and became Ghana’s First Lady following his assumption of power in 1979, and again from 1981 to 2001. Beyond her role as First Lady, she emerged as a powerful voice for women’s empowerment and social transformation.

In 1982, she founded the 31st December Women’s Movement, a nationwide organisation that mobilised over two million Ghanaian women to participate in development, education, and business. The movement established hundreds of preschools and community projects across Ghana, giving thousands of women and children opportunities for growth and inclusion.

Nana Konadu made history in 2016 when she became the first woman to run for President of Ghana, representing the National Democratic Party (NDP), a party she founded after leaving the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Earlier, she had served as First Vice Chairperson of the NDC and contested President John Atta Mills for the party’s flagbearership in 2011, becoming one of the few women in Africa to challenge for leadership at that level.