Mrs. Joana Akosua Dankwaa Kyei |Founder|
The world in every period produces exceptional individuals who would be difficult to replace, and whose thoughts and actions made a difference to their age. Mrs Joana Nana Akosua Dankwaa Kyei unquestionably belonged to that select group. She was not only a dignified royal lady, a great mother, and a dutiful wife, but a remarkable teacher. A true royal by birth, Nana Akosua Dankwaa, was born in Kumasi to the late Opanin Kofi Ahenkro, a successful transport owner from Ejuratia Mpobi, and the late Nana Ama Saa of the Asante Oyoko royal family on Sunday, August 1, 1937.It is pertinent to note that Nana Ama Saa is an elder sister of HM Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the current Asantehene. As a royal, she was scrupulously schooled at home by her grandmother, Nana Afia Konadu among other noted royals. She was raised with strong traditional values of love for family, tenacity, respect for authority, and service to her community. These were values she transferred not only to her children and extended family but to all who came into contact with her.
A Woman of Substance
The child Joana was one of the first cycles of female Asante royals to enjoy formal education. She had her early years education K.O. Methodist/Asawase primary/middle school respectively, moving on to St. Monica’s Teacher Training College in Asante Mampong in 1956 where she trained as a primary school teacher/trainer. She also trained as a specialist early-years teacher at the Akropong Teacher Training College in the Akwapim North District.Teaching turned out to be Nana Dankwaa’s inherent vocation for over a period of 40 years. She taught across several primary schools in Tema for a large part of her career. She taught at Twedaase Primary School, Aggrey Road Primary School, Mexico Primary School and Mante-Din Drive Primary School. She also taught at several primary schools across the country including Duaso L/A Primary in the Upper West Denkyira District in the Central Region, Yaa Asantewaa Primary in Kumasi and Adiembra M/A Primary School in Sekondi. At her peak, she became the Headteacher at Community 2 No 4 Primary School, where she retired after rendering a fruitful and satisfying service.
A lady teacher was always a hot potato; it did not take long for a suitor to emerge as a future husband, in the name of Mr. Frederick Kwame Kyei. He was a dashing well-educated Achiase/Denyase royal, who was then working as a Local Government Administrator. Their well-attended marriage was blessed at St Peter’s Cathedral Basilica, Kumasi in June 1958.
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As the first Oyoko royal to have her marriage blessed in a church, the occasion was graced by HM Otumfuo Nana Sir Osei Agyeman Prempeh II, the 14th Asantehene, and many members of the distinguished royal family. It was a joyous occasion, and the joy permeated through both families.
Although born and brought up an Anglican, she converted to Roman Catholicism on marriage. She took her Catholicism extremely seriously taking active and spirited part in several of its organizations including the Knights and Ladies of Marshall and the Christian Mother's Association which acknowledged her on several occasions with several awards. She possessed strong and entrenched Christian values and a committed adherence to the doctrines of the church.
Although a strong moralist, she was also in several ways a realist who believed in the practical side and influences of life. Mrs. Kyei was a noted and distinguished presence at Sunday Mass in both Our Lady of Mercy (Community 1) and the Good Shepherd (Community 2) parishes, Tema. She was an intensely warm, compassionate and vivacious woman who always went out of her way to support others and was altruistic to a fault. The teaching profession shaped, moulded and influenced her life for a large part of her life. She strongly believed in the power of education as the inexhaustible source and tool for change in a child’s life and would go to the end of the world to ensure that any child she came into contact with was in school and had an education.
The Foundation
Akosua Dankwaa Foundation
To this end, she diligently founded the Akosua Dankwaa Foundation, an education charity she set up, to financially assist bright but needy children to pursue their educational ambitions to their logical end. She directly and indirectly influenced and continues to influence over 40 beneficiaries, families, and communities. While some have started their working lives, others are still at various tertiary institutions.
