H.E Ambassador Dr. Eunice Brookman-Amissah is a pioneering Ghanaian physician and diplomat whose illustrious career has been defined by a deep commitment to public health, women’s reproductive rights, and international relations. She stands as one of the continent’s most respected voices in medicine and social justice. Her academic journey began at the prestigious Achimota School, where she served as Girls’ Senior Prefect and achieved outstanding results in her GCE ‘O’ and ‘A’ levels. She subsequently attended the University of Ghana Medical School, where she graduated with distinction in Public Health and was awarded the Tazellaar Prize for being the top science student.
Dr. Brookman-Amissah’s clinical expertise was forged through decades of service in both Ghana and the United Kingdom. After completing residencies in London at hospitals such as West Middlesex and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, she returned to Ghana to serve as a Senior Medical Officer at the University of Cape Coast Hospital. Her leadership in the private sector included serving as a Resident Doctor at the Nyaho Clinic and eventually establishing the Club Road Clinic in Accra, where she provided comprehensive family practice services for a decade. Her peers recognized her leadership early on, electing her as the first female Vice-President of the Ghana Medical Association in 1992.
As Ghana’s Minister of Health from 1996 to 1998, Dr. Brookman-Amissah spearheaded some of the most significant healthcare reforms in the nation’s history. She led the creation of the Ghana Health Service and pioneered the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAPs), which unified donor funding into a single national program for greater impact. Her efforts were also instrumental in the “Kick Polio out of Africa” campaign and in creating incentives to retain health professionals within Ghana.
Following her tenure as Minister, she was appointed Ghana’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands (1998–2001). In this diplomatic role, she successfully re-established the Ghanaian Embassy in The Hague after an 18-year closure and lobbied for a significant increase in Dutch bilateral development aid to Ghana. She also fostered international cultural understanding through a long-running exhibition of Ghanaian culture that reached over 70% of Dutch school-aged children.
From 2001 to 2014, Dr. Brookman-Amissah served as the Vice-President for Africa of Ipas, where she transformed the organization into a powerhouse for women’s reproductive rights across more than 20 African countries. Her tireless advocacy for access to safe and legal reproductive health services has been credited with a 40% drop in maternal deaths from unsafe abortions on the continent.
Her lifelong dedication has earned her numerous global accolades, most notably the Right Livelihood Honorary Award (the “Alternative Nobel Prize”) in 2023. She has also been honored with the African Woman Pioneer Award and the Ghana Women of Excellence Award. Today, she remains an active advisor on global health policy, contributing to prestigious boards like AmplifyChange and sharing her expertise as a keynote speaker at international fora.
She was appointed as a member of the 9th Council of State in February 2025 by H.E. The President of Ghana, H.E John Dramani Mahama.
Dr. Brookman-Amissah is a global citizen who enjoys a variety of personal pursuits. In her semi-retirement, she finds fulfillment in playing golf, traveling, and attending the opera.