Josephine Akosua Adomako Ampofo is a Ghanaian academic who is a professor of

Gender Studies Gender studies is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to analysing gender identity and gendered representation. Gender studies originated in the field of women's studies, concerning women, feminism, gender, and politics. The field ...

and

African Studies African studies is the study of Africa, especially the continent's cultures and societies (as opposed to its geology, geography, zoology, etc.). The field includes the study of Africa's history (pre-colonial, colonial, post-colonial), demography ...

at the

University of Ghana The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It the oldest and largest of the thirteen Ghanaian national public universities. The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the Br ...

. She is feminist activist-scholar, and a strong advocate for social justice.

Early life and education

Ampofo's mother is

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

and her father is

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

and Asante. Her father's family come from the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) tradition. Ampofo attended

Aburi Girls' Secondary School Aburi Girls' Senior High School, formerly Aburi Girls' Secondary School, also known as ABUGISS, is a Presbyterian senior high boarding school for girls located south of Aburi in the Eastern Region of Ghana. The brother school of Aburi Girls is ...

. Ampofo earned her bachelor's degree at the

Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) is a public University of Ghana that focuses on science and technology. The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology is the public university established in the country, as well a ...

, where she studied architectural design. She earned her master's degree at the same university in development planning and management. Ampofo earned her PhD in

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

from

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

. Additionally, she holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in Spatial Planning from the

Technical University of Dortmund TU Dortmund University (german: Technische Universität Dortmund) is a technical university in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany with over 35,000 students, and over 6,000 staff including 300 professors, offering around 80 Bachelor's an ...

, Germany.

Academic career

Ampofo started teaching at the

(UG) in 1989. During 1994 and 1995, Ampofo was a Junior

Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

Scholar. In 2005, became the first Head of the Centre for Gender Studies and Advocacy (CEGENSA) at UG, which she held until 2009. Around 2008, she became an editor for ''Ghana Studies'', working on that journal until 2013. She has also been the editor of the '' Contemporary Journal of African Studies''. She was a Mellon Fellow in 2014 at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

, where she worked in the Centre for African Studies. In 2015, she worked as a Senior Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at

Concordia University Irvine Concordia University Irvine is a private Lutheran university in Irvine, California, United States. It was established in 1976 to provide a Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod college to serve the Pacific Southwest and provide training for pastors, ...

. She has in the past consulted for organisations such as

UNIFEM The United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM, french: Fonds de développement des Nations unies pour la femme, ) was established in December 1976 originally as the Voluntary Fund for the United Nations Decade for Women in the International ...

UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Devel ...

World Health Organization (WHO) The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization established in the United Kingdom in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic ...

UNAIDS The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) (, ONUSIDA) is the main advocate for accelerated, comprehensive and coordinated global action on the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The mission of UNAIDS is to lead, strengthen and support an e ...

, Ministry for Gender & Social Protection, Ghana; Participatory Development Associates; Gender Studies and Human Rights Documentation Centre and

Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre Based in Ghana, the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) provides training and research in peacekeeping and peaceoperations. Established in 1998, headed by Maj-Gen. Clayton Yaache, it formally began operations in 2002. ...

Professional association

In 2019, as president of the African Studies Association of Africa (ASAA), she presided over the first conference held in

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

. Ampofo was a founding member of the ASAA which formed in 2013. She is also a member of the Association and Sociologists for Women and Society, (SWS),

African Studies Association The African Studies Association (ASA) is a US-based association of scholars, students, practitioners, and institutions with an interest in the continent of Africa. Founded in 1957, the ASA is the leading organization of African Studies in North ...

, United States, Ghana Domestic Violence Coalition, the Network for Women's Rights in Ghana, the Council for Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) and International Sociological Association, (ISA). She is also a fellow of the

Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences The Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences (GAAS) is a learned society for the arts and sciences based in Accra, Ghana. The institution was founded in November 1959 by Kwame Nkrumah with the aim to promote the pursuit, advancement and dissemination ...

References

External links

How Gender Equality Can Shape Up in Future
(2018 TEDxAfraiwaa video)
CURRICULUM VITA 2016
( Akosua Adomako Ampofo CV) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ampofo, Akosua Adomako Gender studies academics Ghanaian women academics Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology alumni Vanderbilt University alumni Academic staff of the University of Ghana Ghanaian sociologists Alumni of Aburi Girls' Senior High School Ghanaian women activists Technical University of Dortmund alumni Fellows of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences