Former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings Passes Away at 77, Leaving Legacy of Empowerment and Political Fire
Former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings Passes Away at 77, Leaving Legacy of Empowerment and Political Fire
Accra, October 23, 2025 – Ghana has lost one of its most enduring political trailblazers with the passing of Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, the nation’s longest-serving First Lady, at the age of 77.
The formidable widow of the late President Jerry John Rawlings succumbed in the early hours of Thursday at Ridge Hospital in Accra, following a brief illness, sources close to the family confirmed to multiple media outlets.
As of midday, no official statement had been issued by the Rawlings family or the government, but the Presidency extended its “sincerest condolences” via the Information Services Department, expressing profound grief for the Agyeman-Rawlings clan and the nation.
Nana Konadu, a fierce advocate for women’s rights and social justice, breathed her last surrounded by loved ones, capping a life of unyielding activism that spanned decades. Born on October 17, 1948, in Kumasi as Konadu Adu, she married Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings in 1977, two years before his revolutionary coup that toppled the Supreme Military Council.
As First Lady from 1981 to 2001—serving through Rawlings’ PNDC and NDC eras—she founded the 31st December Women’s Movement in 1982, mobilizing women for political participation and economic independence, a legacy that empowered generations in a male-dominated landscape.
Her political journey was as bold as her personal one: After leaving the NDC in 2006 over ideological differences, she founded the National Democratic Party (NDP) in 2012, running for president in 2016 and securing 0.6% of the vote—a testament to her grassroots appeal.
Known as the “Iron Lady,” Nana Konadu remained a vocal critic of power, championing gender equality through her 21st Century Women’s Empowerment Foundation and advocating for marginalized voices until her final days.
Just weeks ago, she joined dignitaries in wreathing the eight public servants lost in a September helicopter crash and consoled Otumfuo Osei Tutu II at the Dote Yie rites for the late Asantehemaa, Nana Konadu Yiadom III— a poignant moment with her children, Amina and Kimathi Rawlings, by her side.
