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Constance Edjeani-Afenu

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Constance Ama Emefa Edjeani-Afenu (5 March 1960[1] ― 24 January 2022;[2] née Edjeani) was the first female brigadier general of the Ghana Armed Forces and, posthumously, the first female major general.

She was deployed to several United Nations peacekeeping missions, including missions in Lebanon, Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. She also served as the Deputy Military Adviser to Ghana's permanent Mission in New York City.[3]

Early life

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Volta Region of Ghana

Constance Ama Emefa Edjeani-Afenu was born on 5 March 1960 at Vane Avatime, Volta Region,[4] and raised in Ho, the capital of the Volta Region of Ghana. She was the sixth-born of ten siblings, and her younger sister is Ghanaian actress, Akofa Edjeani.[5] Her father served in the military, and two of her siblings also pursued military careers, though they predeceased her.[6] Her mother was Mrs. Alice Grette Kwawu-Edzeani.[4]

Edjeani-Afenu attended Kamina Barracks Primary School and Armed Forces Experimental School in Kumasi before completing her O- and A-levels at Wesley Girl's Senior High School in Cape Coast.[4]

Education

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Edjeani-Afenu holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA). She obtained a Post Graduate Diploma in Management Practice from the Paris Graduate School of Management,[6] and completed a Diploma in Public Relations and Advertising at the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ).[6]

She has earned several professional certifications, including a Certificate in Public Administration, a Certificate in Budgeting and Financial Management, and a Certificate in Wealth Creation from the Swiss eLearning Institute.[7][6]

Career

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Edjeani-Afenu entered the Ghanaian Armed Forces in 1978, at age 18 and dedicated 41 years of her life to military service. She was one of only two female students in her intake, and the other woman left the course after a few weeks. Edjeani-Afenu was commissioned on 25 April 1980 as a Second Lieutenant after 18 months of training at Ghana Military Academy.[8][9] In the early 1990s, she was at the Junior Division of the Armed Forces Command and Staff College,[10] She later joined the Forces Pay Regiment as a commanding officer in 1999.[9]

In February 1999,  the then Major Edjeani-Afenu was appointed the Commanding Officer of the Forces Pay Office, making her the first female Commanding Officer of a Unit in the Ghana Armed Forces.

She was appointed to serve as the Deputy Military Adviser of the Permanent Mission in the New York from 2013 to 2016. It was also the first time a woman had occupied that position.[8]

As part of Ghana Battalion, she was deployed to UNIFIL in 1994 and 1998, MONUSCO in 2007, and UNMIL in 2009.[8]

On 7 March 2016, Edjeani-Afenu was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, the highest position ever occupied by a female in the Armed Forces.[11][12][13]

The UN appointed her as the Deputy Force Commander in MINURSO in September of 2019, where she was stationed in Western Sahara.[9][14][15]

Edjeani's career is of particular significance to the Ghanaian people and the African community because her achievements represent the efforts of African countries to be more inclusive and representative with their millitary staffing. In 2018, the Department for Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) and Department for Field Support (DFS) published its first 'Policy on Gender Responsive United Nations Peacekeeping Operations', outlining a mandatory requirement for all uniformed and civilian personnel to ensure UN and African Union peacekeeping operations consider women and men's concerns and experiences equally throughout all levels of service.[16] Edjeani's service was an example of the fruit of these combined efforts. Because of these initiatives, she became a part of the 17 percent of women serving in the Ghana Armed Forces across all ranks and services (up from 10 percent in 2006) and the 12.5 percent of the GAF's deployed women peacekeepers.[17]

Achievements

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During Edjeani-Afenu's training, she was appointed Cadet Sergeant, a position previously only held by male recruits. She earned the Determination and Perseverance Trophy in her graduating class, Ghana Armed Forces.[18]

In February 1999, Major-General Edjeani-Afenu was appointed the Commanding Officer of the Forces Pay Office, making her the first female Commanding Officer of a Unit in the Ghana Armed Forces.[19]

In March 2017, she was promoted to Brigadier-General in the Armed Forces. This made her the first female to get this rank in GAF.[1]

She was named the African Union (A.U.) Gender champion for 2017 by the president of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo. She received the "First Lady's Award" on International Women's Day in 2019 from Rebecca Akufo-Addo.[1]

She was posthumously promoted to the rank of major general, with the approval of the president of Ghana, becoming the first Ghanaian Female to attain this position.[20][1]

The memoir: The Lady in Boots

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On September 6 2023, Edjeani-Afenu's memoir titled Lady in Boots was published (ISBN 9789988361426). It was specifically launched during an event at Burma Hall in Burma Camp, Accra. This memoir contains a detailed recitation of her life, family, time in the military, and serving God. Throughout the 326 pages, she recounts the expectation of females in the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) and the consideration of Gender Mainstreaming. [21]

During the book launch event, the current Ghana Ambassador to Egypt, Lieutenant General Obed Boamah Akwa, acknowledged the uniqueness of the launch was due to the personality of Edjeani-Afenu. He continued to state that Edjeani-Afenu's ability to do all these items before passing away indicates her dedication and purpose. Brigadier General Anita Asmah points to her military insight and contributions made to gender mainstreaming in the GAF. She reveals that a chapter of the book is dedicated to gender contemporary issues and the practices that could be used to combat it. Practices like holding a lecture on gender equality and mainstreaming within the United Nation (UN) and the GAF. [21]

Personal life and death

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Edjeani married Fred Afenu,[when?] an army officer; they had three children.[4]

She died in 37 Military Hospital on 24 January 2022, after a brief illness.[22]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d AfricaNews (25 July 2017). "Ghana gets first female Brigadier General: Salute to Constance Edjeani-Afenu". Africanews. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  2. ^ "UN Secretary-General's Spokesperson - on the death of former MINURSO Deputy Force Commander Brigadier General Constance Emefa Edjeani-Afenu | United Nations Secretary-General". un.org. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  3. ^ "Ghana Armed Forces Records Its First Ever Female Brigadier General". Ghana News Today. 5 March 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  4. ^ a b c d "Brigadier General Constance Ama Emefa Edjeani-Afenu - MyJoyOnline". www.myjoyonline.com. 18 March 2022. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  5. ^ Afua Nyarko, Christiana; Appiah, Dorcas (6 September 2023). "Women can succeed in male-dominated fields — Edjeani". Ghana News Agency. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d "Brig Gen Constance Ama Emefa Edjeanit-Afenu - First female general of GAF". Ghana Peace Journal. 14 August 2019. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  7. ^ "Swiss eLearning Institute". www.mbastudies.com. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  8. ^ a b c "Ghana's first female Brigadier-General Constance Emefa Edjeani-Afenu is dead". GhanaWeb. 25 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  9. ^ a b c "Constance Emefa Edjeani-Afenu". sites.ungeneva.org. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
  10. ^ "Celebrating Ghanaian women : 20 years after Beijing". www.ghanaweb.com. 26 October 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  11. ^ Graphic.com.gh. "Constance Edjeani-Afenu becomes Ghana's first female Brigadier General - Graphic Online". www.graphic.com.gh. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  12. ^ admin (4 March 2016). "Ama Emefa Edjeani-Afenu first female Brigadier General". Ghana Live TV. Archived from the original on 26 February 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  13. ^ Kamasah, Andreas (26 January 2022). ""She was shining example of what women can do" – First Lady mourns first female Brigadier General". Pulse Ghana. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  14. ^ "Arrival of New Deputy Force Commander to MINURSO". United Nations Peacekeeping. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
  15. ^ "First Lady pays tribute to departed first female soldier". Modern Ghana. 25 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  16. ^ UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations; UN Department of Field Support (2018). "Policy: Gender Responsive United Nations Peacekeeping Operations" (PDF). United Nations. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  17. ^ Georgina, Holmes (3 December 2020). "Strengthening UK Support for Gender-Responsive, People-Centred Peacekeeping in Africa". The RUSI Journal. 156 (5–6): 36–45. Retrieved 17 November 2024 – via Taylor & Francis.
  18. ^ Abena, Nyansa. "Beautiful Balance: Legacy of Ghana's First Female Major General [Article]". Modern Ghana. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  19. ^ "Abena Nyansa writes: Beautiful Balance: Legacy of Ghana's First Female Major General [Article]". Citinewsroom - Comprehensive News in Ghana. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  20. ^ "Ghana's First Female General Remembered Through her Memoir, 'Lady in Boots'". Africa Defense Forum. 3 April 2024. Retrieved 18 November 2024. She was posthumously promoted from brigadier general to major general in a move approved by the president.
  21. ^ a b "Memoir of late Maj Gen Edjeani-Affnu (Rtd) launched". gafonline.mil.gh. Ghana Armed Forces. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  22. ^ "Ghana loses first female Brigadier-General". Graphic Online. Retrieved 25 January 2022.


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