Akua Sarpong-Ayisa (born in Mampong) is a

Ghana 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 the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

ian entrepreneur. She founded and operates the floral company "Unique Floral" which operates across

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

. She was listed as one of Glitz 100 Inspirational Women, WomanRising's 100 Most Outstanding Women Entrepreneurs in

in 2016 and 2017.

Early life

Sarpong-Ayisa was born in Mampong located in the

Ashanti Region The Ashanti Region is located in southern part of Ghana and it is the third largest of 16 administrative regions, occupying a total land surface of or 10.2 percent of the total land area of Ghana. In terms of population, however, it is the mo ...

of Ghana. Together with six siblings and parents, she grew up in

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

Education

After having her basic education at St John's Preparatory School in Accra, she furthered at

Oda Senior High School Oda Senior High School (ODASCO) is a co-educational second-cycle institution in Akim Oda, situated in the Birim Central Municipal District in the Eastern Region Eastern Region or East Region may refer to: * Eastern Region (Abu Dhabi): Al Ain *Ea ...

where she had her secondary education. From there, she went to Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology where she was to study estate management but could not complete due to a temporal shutdown of the school. During the shut down of the school, she took a flight attendant course with

Ghana Airways Ghana Airways Limited was the flag carrier of Ghana, with its main base of operation and hub at Kotoka International Airport in Accra. The airline ceased operations in 2004, although plans were discussed to revive it in 2020 in partnership wit ...

Career

Sarpong-Ayisa worked for the Ghana National Lotteries before working as a cashier at the Bank for Housing before attending university. After her post-university flight attendant course, she worked as a flight attendant for Ghana Airways for 22 years. During her years as a flight attendant, Sarpong-Ayisa developed in interest in flowers. She bought exotic flowers from the Netherlands, United States, and the United Kingdom for her home and for gifts to family and friends. She began a flower business at the advice of her husband in 1991 and later named the business "Unique Floral". Her business expanded to provide flowers and floral planning services in Ghana and neighboring West African countries. Her flowers include imported flowers from South Africa,

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

, and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

as well as flowers grown and selected from her 20-acre floral farm in Aburi in the

Eastern Region Eastern Region or East Region may refer to: * Eastern Region (Abu Dhabi): Al Ain *Eastern Region, Ghana *Eastern Region (Iceland) *Eastern Region, Nepal *Eastern Region, Nigeria * Eastern Region, Serbia * Eastern Region, Uganda * Eastern Region of ...

of Ghana. Her retail floral business has expanded to open a modern flower decoration training school in Accra.

Awards and recognition

* Listed among WomenRising 100 most influential women in 2016 *Listed among WomenRising 100 most influential women in 2017 * Global Center for Transformational Leadership's Global Leadership Award * Top 100 Most Inspirational Women of the Year by Glitz Style Awards

Personal life

She is married to Air Commodore (Rtd) Philip Ayisa and the couple are blessed with eight children, 3 boys and 5 girls.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sarpong-Ayisa, Akua Living people 21st-century Ghanaian businesswomen 21st-century Ghanaian businesspeople Year of birth missing (living people)