Her Excellency Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang was the Chancellor of the Women’s University in Africa in Harare, Zimbabwe, from 2018 to 2024.
She has served her country in diverse capacities. She was the first woman to hold the position of Vice Chancellor in Ghana, leading the University of Cape Coast (UCC) from 2008 to 2012.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang is the immediate past President of the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) and Chairperson of the Africa Board.
She also served as the Minister for Education of Ghana from 2013 to 2017.
At the University of Cape Coast, she was Head of the Department of English, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Dean of the Board of Graduate Studies, Founding Dean of the School of Graduate Studies and Research, and Vice Chancellor. She was also a two-time Fulbright scholar.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang holds a BA (Hons) in French and English, a Diploma in Education from the University of Cape Coast, a Diploma in Advanced Studies in French from the University of Dakar, and an MA and PhD in Literature from York University in Toronto, Canada.
She is the recipient of national and international awards, notably:
- Officer of the Order of the Volta (for Academic Distinction)
- Ghana Women of Excellence Award (Education Category)
- Doctor of Letters, University of Cape Coast (Honoris Causa)
- Doctor of Humane Letters, Grand Valley State University, Michigan, USA (Honoris Causa)
- Doctor of Humane Letters, Winston Salem State University, North Carolina, USA (Honoris Causa)
- Doctor of Laws, University of the West Indies (Honoris Causa)
- Global Leadership Award, University of South Florida, USA
- Twice recognised for Outstanding Performance in Advancing International Education, School for International Training, Vermont, USA.
She has been a member of national and international boards and committees, including:
- The College of Physicians and Surgeons as Eminent Citizen
- The Centre for Democratic Governance (CDD-Ghana)
- The Executive Board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
- The Global Advisory Council, World Learning Inc.
- The Editorial Board, The Harriet Tubman Series on the African Diaspora, York University, Canada
Vice President Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang is a Life Fellow of the Commonwealth of Learning and a Fellow of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences. She is blessed with three children and two grandchildren.