Elizabeth Adjei is a

Ghanaian The Ghanaian people are a nation originating in the Gold Coast (region), Ghanaian Gold Coast. Ghanaians predominantly inhabit the Republic of Ghana and are the predominant cultural group and residents of Ghana, numbering 34 million people as of ...

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

. In September 2002, she was appointed as director of the

Ghana Immigration Service The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) is an agency of the government of Ghana under the Ministry of the Interior. The GIS regulates the examination and authorization of applications for visas, entry, and residence permits in Ghana. Control of forei ...

, making her the first woman to occupy such a position. She has served as Ghana's Ambassador to Spain, a position she held from 2015 to 2020.

Early life and education

Adjei was born in Ghana. For her secondary education, she attended the Archbishop Porter Girls' Secondary School in

Takoradi Sekondi-Takoradi ( ) is a city in Ghana comprising the twin cities of Sekondi and Takoradi. It is the capital of Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan District and the Western Region of Ghana. Sekondi-Takoradi is the region's largest city as well as ...

and the St. Louis Senior High School in

Kumasi Kumasi is a city and the capital of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and the Ashanti Region of Ghana. It is the second largest city in the country, with a population of 443,981 as of the 2021 census. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region ...

. She then proceeded to the

Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), commonly known as UST, Tech or Kwame Tech, is a public university located in Kumasi, Ashanti region, Ghana. The university focuses on science and technology. It is the second public uni ...

(KNUST) where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree. She holds a Master's Degree in

International Development International development or global development is a broad concept denoting the idea that societies and countries have differing levels of economic development, economic or human development (economics), human development on an international sca ...

from the

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

in New York, as well as certificates in Management and Personnel Management from the

Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration The Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) is a public co-educational university spread over four campuses (Accra, Tema, Kumasi and Takoradi) and made up of six schools, ten research centers located at Greenhill in Accra ...

and a Diploma in French from the University of Benin.

Career

After completing university, Adjei did her national service at the Ghana Immigration Service where she worked as personal assistant to the then head of the institution. She later joined the service in 1988 and worked as administrative assistant. In 2002, she became the first woman to be appointed as director of the Ghana Immigration Service, a position she held until 2011. She was appointed as Ghana's Ambassador to Spain in 2015 by President

John Dramani Mahama John Dramani Mahama (; born 29 November 1958) is a Ghanaian politician who has been the 14th president of Ghana since January 2025. A member of the National Democratic Congress (Ghana), National Democratic Congress (NDC), he served as the 12th p ...

, a position she held till 2020 when her tenure ended. After the

New Patriotic Party The New Patriotic Party (NPP; ) is a Centre-right politics, centre-right and Liberal conservatism, liberal-conservative political party in Ghana. Since the democratisation of Ghana in 1992, it has been one of the two dominant parties in Ghanaian ...

came into power, her mandate as ambassador was renewed by President

Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo William Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo ( ; born 29 March 1944) is a Ghanaian politician who served as the 13th president of Ghana from January 2017 to January 2025. He previously served as Attorney General from 2001 to 2003 and as Minister for Fore ...

for 3 years.

Personal life

Adjei is married with three children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adjei, Elizabeth Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology alumni Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration alumni Cornell University alumni Ghanaian women ambassadors 21st-century Ghanaian women Ambassadors of Ghana to Spain Archbishop Porter Girls' Senior High School alumni St. Louis Senior High School (Ghana) alumni