The special vigil, held last Friday, November 3, 2023, brought together the leadership of the NDC as well as the rank and file of the party.

The former Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development passed away at the age of 75 on July 22, 2023.

Biography

Madam Sherry Ayittey was born in 1948.

She had her secondary school education at Labone Secondary School in Accra and was a member of the 1965-67 year group.

She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and a Master of Science in Industrial Microbiology from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, then the University of Science and Technology (UST).

Madam Ayittey served as the managing director of Ghana Industrial Holding Corporation (GIHOC) Distilleries. She also served on several management boards in Ghana, including the Ghana Water and Sewerage Corporation, now Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), Ghana Forestry Commission, and the Ghana Export Promotion Council.

She led Ghana’s delegation to the Conference of Parties (COP) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, and the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity, which resulted in the famous Paris Climate Agreement.

She was a founding member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and served in various roles within the party and in government, including as a women’s activist, a minister of state, and a National Vice Chairperson.

After the 2008 presidential election, President John Atta Mills appointed Ayittey as Minister for Environment, Science, and Technology in his government in January 2009.

In January 2013, she was appointed Minister for Health by President John Dramani Mahama, taking over from Alban Bagbin.

On June 9, 2014, Sherry Ayittey was reassigned by President Mahama to the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture.