Accra has received news of the passing of Professor Ama Ata Aidoo, a celebrated playwright and author.
A statement from her family claims that the renowned Ghanaian author passed away this morning, May 31, 2023, in the early hours.
“The Family of PROF. AMA ATA AIDOO with deep sorrow but in the hope of the resurrection, informs the general public that our beloved relative and writer passed away in the early hours of this morning Wednesday 31st May 2023, after a short illness.
“Funeral arrangements would be announced in due course. The Family requests privacy at this difficult moment,” Family head Kwamena Essandoh Aidoo announced in a short statement.
Prof. Ata Aidoo has published award-winning novels, plays, short stories, children’s books, and poetry, and influenced generations of African women writers.
Christina Ama Ata Aidoo was born on 23 March 1942 in Abeadzi Kyiakor, near Saltpond, in the Central Region of Ghana.
Some sources (including Megan Behrent, Brown University, and Africa Who’s Who) have stated that she was born on 31 March 1940. She had a twin brother, Kwame Ata. She was 81 years.