2020 Elections: Mahama Picks Jane Nana Opoku Agyeman as Running Mate

Jul 6, 2020 - 11:22

Jane Nana Opoku Agyeman

The flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress, John Dramani Mahama has settled on former Minister of Education, Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang as his running mate for the upcoming 2020 general elections.

Mahama, made the announcement at the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) today, Monday, July 6, 2020.

The party’s NEC, has reportedly approved the nomination.

This makes Prof Opoku-Agyemang the first female running mate of the two leading political parties in the country [NDC and NPP].

Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, in grabbing the position, faced stiff competition from a former Director-General of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Dr. Isaac Bannerman Nii Moi Thompson, a former Minister of Health and Deputy Campaign Manager for the 2020 elections, Mr. Alex Segbefia and former Finance Minister, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor.

Profile of Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang

Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang is the current Africa Board Chairperson of the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE). She has been a FAWE member since 2014. She is a former Minister of Education in Ghana.

Prof. Opoku-Agyemang was appointed the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast in 2008, the first female Vice-Chancellor of a public university in Ghana.

Before heading the university, she had since 1986 served as head of the Department of English, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Dean of the Board of Graduate Studies and Founding Dean of the School of Graduate Studies and Research.

She was also the Academic Director of the African Diaspora Studies programme of School for International Training Study Abroad.

In October 2009, she was elected Ghana’s representative to UNESCO’s Executive Board. She has been re-elected for a second time to UNESCO Executive Board.

She obtained her Diplôme Supérieure d’Etudes Françaises from the University of Dakar, Senegal in 1976, a B. A. (Hons) with a Diploma in Education from the University of Cape Coast in 1977 and Masters and Doctorate degrees from York University in Toronto, Canada in 1980 and 1986 respectively.

Naana has chaired more than twenty Boards and Committees, among them: the Council of the University College of Education, Winneba 1998-2002; Academic Committee of the Ghana Council for Tertiary Education; and was Joint Co-coordinator of the Specialist Program in English Language and Ghanaian Culture for Japan Overseas Co-operation Volunteers 1991-1993.

She has also chaired the Adjudication Committee, VALCO Literary Awards, Ghana 1993-1998; Board of Governors, Ghana Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD-Ghana) since its founding in 1998; and, Board of Governors, Wesley Girls High School 1994-1998.