President Nana Akufo-Addo has extolled the virtues of the late Ama Atta Aidoo whom he described as an exceptional writer.

He said that her kind will be difficult to find among the community of writers.

Speaking at the funeral service of the late writer at the forecourt of the State House in Accra, he commended her outstanding role in the educational sector and remembered the impacts of her great books and writings.

“The community of writers has lost one of its greatest members, one who will be extremely difficult to replace,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo praised the literary giant whose works he said were flawless and very exceptional.

“Exceptional woman, knowledgeable teacher, famous poet, public servant, flawless storyteller, outstanding writer, she possessed an excellent mastery of the English language.”

“She was a big Ghanaian and had a reach beyond Ghana,” he said.

He added that they were colleagues at the University of Ghana in the 1960s and they had a friendly and productive relationship even though she was four years older than him.

The President also mentioned that Ama Atta Aidoo was an advocate for women and fought against all challenges and trials faced by women.                                                                                              

“As a tireless advocate for women, she believed that women are the first land educators of our children, our communities, our nation, our region and our continent and that we empower our children by empowering our women.”

“She fought against the multitude of hurdles, cultural, economic, religious and social that faced women and urged leaders across the continent and the world to take appropriate actions to implement fully and efficiently, commitments needed to improve the welfare of women and girls on the continent,” the President said.

Ama Atta Aidoo was a Ghanaian author, playwright and poet. She passed away on Wednesday, May 31, 2023, aged 81.

She served as Ghana’s Education Minister under the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) in 1982.

She resigned after 18 months after realising that she would be unable to achieve her aim of making education in Ghana freely accessible to all.

One of her well-known books that was studied at Senior High Schools was “No sweetness here”.