Amb Elizabeth Adjei

Amb Elizabeth Adjei

PROFILE – AMB.  ELIZABETH ADJEI

Ms. Elizabeth Adjei is a consummate public service careerist with over three decades of experience and remarkable accomplishments as a high-level management executive and diplomat. She has extensive experience in strategic policy development and operational management, as well as implementing capacity building programs in migration related issues on women in peace and security.

In her recent post as Ghana’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Kingdom of Spain and Andorra and Permanent Representative to the United Nations World Tourism organization, (UNWTO), she had the opportunity to use her unique skills in leadership and diplomacy to promote the strategic interests of Ghana through engagement and partnerships with key actors, including foreign governments, UN agencies, International organizations, civil society organizations, business and academic and research institutions, think tanks among others. Her efforts received several commendations with her peers and earned her an induction as an Honorary Member to the Academia de la Diplomacia for meritorious service in December 2018.

As the Director-General of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) (2002-2011), with a passion for results and a strong drive for change and organizational effectiveness, Ms. Adjei steered the restructuring and innovation efforts of the organization where she served as the first female and the longest serving tenure in that position. As per the requisite demands of the job Ms. Adjei provided strategic direction to implement high quality management and operational reforms, transforming the service from a fledgling public service organization into a credible and professional institution capable of providing policy and operational solutions to the current and emerging migration and mobility challenges of Ghana in the context of the political imperatives.

She has been very instrumental in the formulation and implementation of the regional integration agenda, with special focus on Integrated Border Management, human mobility with emphasis on skills and talent mobility as an effective tool to promote peace and economic prosperity in the region.

Ambassador Elizabeth Adjei has deep knowledge and understanding of national and global migration issues, with extensive experience in policy analysis, operational capacity and migration governance. She has played varied roles as a credible representative of the government of Ghana to major global fora including the Global Forum for Migration and Development (GFMD), the International Organization for Migration, the UN High Level Dialogue on Migration and Development (2006 and 2013) and the recently adopted Global Compact for Migration (GCM) and Global Compact for Refugees (GCR), among others.

In this connection, she has worked with national and regional governments, continental bodies such as Regional Economic Communities (RECs), the African Union Commission, and international organizations to explore cooperative approaches to maximize the benefits of migration including policy development and strategy deployment across various fields of migration.

As the first woman to be appointed Director-General of a security sector institution in Ghana, Ambassador Adjei played a meaningful role and provided support for the development of curriculum for the Women, Peace and Security Institute, (WPSI), a knowledge center for the training and research and policy analysis to better inform the broader issues of peace and security in West Africa, nested with the Kofi Annan Peace-Keeping Training Centre based in Accra. She gained key competencies in conflict prevention, management and resolution and used her leverage to promote increased women’s participation and strengthen leadership roles in peace and security.