The Government has directed all flags across Ghana and its diplomatic missions to fly at half-mast from Monday, October 1, 2023, in honour of the late former First Lady, Theresa Kufuor.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who gave the directive said the flags would fly at half-mast until Sunday, October 8, 2023.
This was in a statement signed by the Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, in Accra.
It said Mrs Kufuor, wife of former President John Agyekum Kufuor, lived a life of compassion, unwavering dedication, and selfless service to the people of Ghana.
“We extend our heartfelt condolences to President J. A. Kufuor and the family as we collectively mourn the loss of a remarkable woman who touched the hearts of many,” the statement said.
Born on October 25, 1935, as Theresa Mensah, Mrs Kufuor lived most of her working life in the United Kingdom after her studies at the Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford, and Paddington General Hospital in London.
She served as First Lady from 2001 to 2009 and was married to former President Kufuor for 61 years.
Madam Theresa married John Kufuor when he was at age 23 after they met at a Republic Day Anniversary Dance in London in 1961.
They got married in 1962. She has five children with John Kufuor, former president of Ghana. J. Addo Kufuor, Nana Ama Gyamfi, Saah Kufuor, Agyekum Kufuor and Owusu Afriyie Kufuor.
She is a mother of five, and a grandmother of eight. She is a devout Roman Catholic.
Despite being the first lady of Ghana for eight years between 2001 and 2009, she has managed to maintain a low profile in the political arena.
In 2007, she advocated policy changes in the Government’s white paper on Educational Reforms towards the implementation of UNESCO’s Free compulsory universal basic education (FCUBE) programme for kindergarten children.
She founded the Mother and Child Community Development Foundation (MCCDF), a non-governmental organisation operating in Ghana and Canada that supports work in prevention of mother to child transmission.
