K.B. Asante passes on at 93

Renowned Ghanaian diplomat, Kwaku Baprui Asante, has died at age 93.

This was confirmed to VIPI News by a family member on Monday morning, who said a further statement will be released.
Born on March 1, 1924, K.B. Asante was the Secretary to Ghana’s First President Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, and served under a number of Heads of States in Ghana.

He also served as the Principal Secretary at African Affairs Secretariat from 1960 to 1966.

He became Ghana’s Ambassador to Switzerland and the United Nations Offices in Geneva, and the UN establishment in Vienna, and also the Ambassador to Australia from 1967-72.

He also served as the Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg and the European Economic Community from 1976-1978.

Life in politics

K.B. Asante retired from the Civil Service in 1978, to form the Social Democratic Front to contest the 1979 election where his party won three parliamentary seats in that election.

He was the Secretary for Trade and Tourism in the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) administration in 1982, and later Secretary for Education and Culture from 1986 to 1990.

Education

K.B. Asante attended Achimota School where he later taught mathematics from 1945 to 1948, before proceeding to Durham University in Britain, where he obtained a BSc Mathematics in 1952.

He also became a member of the Institute of Statisticians in 1953, before again returning to Achimota College, where he continued teaching mathematics from 1953 to 1955.