80 Years young! Joyce Aryee, icon of leadership and grace

At 80, she carries her years lightly, but her legacy with unmistakable weight. In a nation shaped by moments of upheaval, reform and renewal, Joyce Rosalind Aryee stands as one of the enduring figures who did not merely witness history, but helped to steady it.

“I don’t feel 80,” she says with a soft laugh. Yet behind that remark lies a life defined by service, conviction and an unwavering sense of purpose.

Her secret? “God has blessed me with a child’s heart, and I cherish it—it has been my greatest blessing.

 Perhaps that is why people often remark on how youthful and radiant I look for my age. But indeed, I am 80, and I am proud and deeply grateful,” Dr Aryee said.

Her recent celebration on March 27, marked by a musical concert hosted by the Harmonious Chorale, drew a cross-section of society—public officials, professionals, faith leaders and ordinary citizens—reflecting the breadth of her influence.

For more than 45 years, she has devoted her life to serving Ghana in diverse capacities, and while her energy and drive remain undiminished, she now embraces her role as an elder stateswoman—a position she holds with deep pride and gratitude.

“Having served in various capacities, it is a blessing to be alive and to be counted among the statesmen and women. While we see many men transition into that stage, we don’t get to see that often when it comes to women, so I cherish this latest stage of my life and will not trade it for anything else and have no regrets for all the lessons and experiences this journey has so far given me, because everyone of it has been in alignment with God’s plan and purpose for me,” she said in a sit-down interview with The Mirror.

A life shaped by leadership

Long before she entered the corridors of state power, Ms Aryee’s instincts for leadership were already evident. From her formative years at Achimota School to her time at the University of Ghana, she did not merely pass through institutions—she shaped them. As Girls’ Prefect and later a JCR President, she honed a leadership style rooted not in authority, but in responsibility and service.

“It was a tough decision for me,” she recalls. “Chairman Rawlings wouldn’t take no for an answer… I wasn’t comfortable, but it was a call to national duty, and I obliged.”

After careful deliberation and with some reluctance, she answered the call of then-Chairman Jerry John Rawlings to serve in the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) as Secretary of Information in 1982. She would later take on the portfolios of Education and subsequently Local Government. 

“It was a ‘fait accompli’ situation, and so I took the approach of what I could do better to improve the situation. I wasn’t comfortable, but it was a call to national duty, and I obliged.

“The beginning was difficult, but it was also a very exciting time as eventually, I managed to build healthy relationships with the Editors of the various newspapers, including the private ones who were very critical of the government,” she revealed.

Once the advocacy for a return to democratic rule gained momentum, Ms Aryee said she knew her days in that space was also near, and wanted to leave a legacy even at that point and agreed to serve as Secretary to the committee that initiated the process for Ghana’s return to democratic rule as a non-cabinet Minister at the National Commission for Democracy which travelled around the country to put together opinions which eventually led to the formation of the 258-member Consultative Assembly that put the 1992 Constitution together.

How did she quit?

Ms Aryee recounts how she eventually left the PNDC and public service, after initial attempts to resign were rejected by then-Chairman Rawlings.

“Two resignation letters were rejected, so I took advantage of the public service regulation that said anyone who overstayed their leave was deemed to have abandoned their role, so I travelled and chose to stay away longer. A reshuffling was done, and eventually, I was left out.”

“That was how I was able to get out, not because I was tired, but because I did not want anyone to talk me into joining the political party campaign.”

“I had to leave because I believe partisan politics had to be a calling, and in the many things that God wanted me to become, that was not one of them. I felt it in my instincts,” she explained.

However, she would find herself back in public service and again in a leadership role when, in 2001, she was appointed as the first woman to head an African Chamber of Mines, serving as the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines for a decade (2001-2011). 

Why the short hair?

Interesting, she said, rather than it being a fashion sense, that hairstyle was chosen out of necessity.

“I realised that there was very little time to go to the salon every weekend to get my hair fixed. Besides, my hairdresser was also losing customers because many of the women who came there and saw me would not return. Also, the bold ones who did would always engage in political discussions and gossip, even while I was seated right there waiting for my turn. 

“So to make it easier for me, my hairdresser and the other clients, I chose to spot a low haircut, and interestingly, I found it so convenient that I stuck to it,” she said with humour.

Ministry

Turning to ministry was also not part of her plans, but then she realised it was God’s purpose for her life.

She said, though she accepted Jesus as her personal Lord and Saviour in 1964, when she was only 18, she did not commit to doing God’s work, and in her own words, “for years, I realised that my life was swinging like a see-saw. One moment I was up, the next moment, I was down. I never found fulfilment and satisfaction until I turned 40, when I heard the voice instructing me to go into ministry.”

She consequently founded the Salt and Light Ministry in 1997 and incorporated it in 1998 as her response to the Great Commission for her to go into the world and preach the gospel, inspired by Methodist Hymn 461, stanza five, which says: 

The dearest idol I have known, whatever that idol be, help me to tear it from Thy throne, and worship only Thee.

Dr Aryee said that after taking that decision, she had had such hunger for God’s word and had come to now understand that all her life experiences were part of God’s plan and timing to nurture her for the work He had called her to do.

“How else will I counsel anyone who is going through something if I have not experienced it before?  

Asked to share any of her life’s lessons she said: “Rely on God and His wisdom, take advantage of education both formal and informal; treat everyone with respect; seek excellence, be confident yet humble, laugh at your own mistakes, but importantly, learn from them because everyone is on this earth for a purpose and each one needs to seek his or her uniqueness and amplify.

“Each day, everyone must remember that the school you attended or what you have does not define you; it is what you do with what you have to the benefit of society is our definition and our purpose on this earth,” she said. 

What’s next after 80?

Dr Aryee, a mother and grandmother, says on her 80th birthday, she prayed to God to give her the same blessings

He gave to Caleb in Numbers 14:28, which, among other things, rewarded him for his unwavering faith and “different spirit”  and preserved him to remain as physically strong at 85 as he was at 40 to conquer the giants. 

“I am the Lord’s handmaid, I have prayed to Him to do with me what brings Him the utmost glory,” she said, stating that beyond her prayer, she would continue to lead and serve in other capacities because she had been blessed with the gift of good health to carry on.

“Technically, my age prevents me from holding any public office or serving on a board,  but there is nothing like retirement on my table. While I can, I will continue to serve, lead, inspire and motivate,” she stated.