Alima Mahama

Hajia Alima Mahama (born 17 November 1957,^[1] Walewale, North East Region) is Ghana's first female ambassador to the US.^[2] She is a lawyer and was from January 2005 to January 2009 Minister for the affairs of women and children in Ghana under President John Kufuor.^[3][4] She was also the Ghanaian Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, appointed to the office by President Nana Akuffo-Addo on 10 January 2017 to 7 January 2021.^[5] Hajia Alima also served as the Member of Parliament for Nalerigu/Gambaga constituency and a member of the New Patriotic Party in the 7th Parliament of the 4th Republic.

Amb Hajia Alima Mahama
Her Excellency Alima Mahama (Hajia)
Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana to the United States
Incumbent
Assumed office June 2021
President	Nana Akuffo-Addo
Preceded by	Baffour Adjei Bawuah
Minister of Local Government and Rural Development
Incumbent
Assumed office 28 January 2017
President	Nana Akufo-Addo
Preceded by	Julius Debrah
Member of the Ghana Parliament for Nalerigu
Incumbent
Assumed office 7 January 2013
Preceded by	New constituency
Majority	27,501
Minister for Woman and Childrens Affairs
President	John Kufour
President	John Atta Mills John Mahama
Personal details
Born	(1957-11-17) 17 November 1957 (age 66) Walewale, Ghana
Political party	New Patriotic Party
Alma mater	University of Ghana
Occupation	Politician
Profession	Lawyer

She was appointed Ambassador of Ghana to the United States in June 2021.^[6]

Education

Alima Mahama had her senior high school education at the Wesley Girls Senior High School, Cape Coast.^[7] She continued her education at the University of Ghana where she earned a bachelor's degree in Law and Sociology.^[8] At the Rutgers University and the University of Ottawa, she had her postgraduate degree in Public Policy and Development Planning and Administration. She has also earned a master's degree in Development Studies from the Institute of Social Studies, in the Netherlands.^[9][10] Hajia Mahama is a product of the Ghana School of Law and was called to the bar in 1982.^[11]

Politics

She served in the government of John Agyekum Kufuor, firstly as the Minister for Women and Children Affairs, Deputy Minister for Trade and Industry , Deputy Minister for Local Government and Rural Development between 2001 and 2008.^[12] Alima Mahama contested the 2016 election on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and won with over 53% of the votes in Nalerigu/Gambaga constituency.^[13]

Other activities

• Clean Cooking Alliance, Member of the Leadership Council^[14]

References

1. "Hajia Alima Mahama | Who's Who Profile | Africa Confidential". Africa-confidential. Retrieved 2019-04-13.
2. "Hajia Alima Mahama: Ghana's first woman ambassador to the US". GhanaWeb. 2021-07-28. Retrieved 2021-07-29.
3. "Hon. Hajia Alima Mahama- The Best Choice For Nalerigu-Gambaga Constituency". GhanaWeb. Retrieved 2016-12-12.
4. Bancey, Seidu. "Hon. Hajia Alima Mahama--The Best Choice For Nalerigu-Gambaga Constituency". ModernGhana. Retrieved 2016-12-12.
5. "List of 1st batch of Nana Addo's ministerial appointments - citifmonline.com". citifmonline. 2017-01-10. Retrieved 2018-10-17.
6. "The Ambassador". Embassy of Ghana, Washington DC. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
7. "Wesley Girls High School - Past Students". wesleygirls school. Archived from the original on 2016-09-01. Retrieved 2017-02-05.
8. "Parliament of Ghana". Parliament Of Ghana. Retrieved 2019-04-13.
9. "Hajia Alima Mahama | World Cities Summit". worldcitiessummit. Archived from the original on 2018-10-17. Retrieved 2018-10-17.
10. "Hajia Alima Mahama – Local Government - Government of Ghana". Government Of Ghana. Archived from the original on 2019-09-26. Retrieved 2018-10-17.
11. "The Ambassador". Embassy of Ghana, Washington DC. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
12. "Hajia Alima Mahama – Local Government - Government of Ghana". Government Of Ghana. Archived from the original on 2019-09-26. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
13. FM, Peace. "Ghana Election 2016 Results - Nalerigu / Gambaga Constituency". Ghana Elections - Peace FM. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
14. Leadership Council Clean Cooking Alliance.