Ghana has lost one of its most respected diplomats and statesmen, Ambassador James Victor Gbeho, a former Minister for Foreign Affairs and past President of the ECOWAS Commission. He passed away at a hospital on Saturday, June 13, 2026, at the age of 91.
Family sources confirmed his death, describing it as the end of a long life dedicated to public service, diplomacy, and regional integration across West Africa and beyond.
Born on January 12, 1935, in Keta in the Volta Region, Ambassador Gbeho built a distinguished career that spanned decades in both national and international service. He served as Ghana’s Foreign Minister from 1997 to 2001 under former President Jerry John Rawlings.
He later entered Parliament, representing the Anlo Constituency from 2001 to 2005, and went on to serve as a foreign policy adviser to the late President John Evans Atta Mills, continuing to play an active role in shaping Ghana’s diplomatic direction.
Gbeho’s international career included key diplomatic postings in countries such as China, India, Nigeria, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland. He also served as Ghana’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York from 1980 to 1990, as well as ambassadorial roles in Geneva and other global capitals.
In 2010, he was unanimously elected President of the ECOWAS Commission, where he worked to strengthen cooperation and integration among West African states until the end of his tenure in 2012.
He also came from a notable family legacy of national service. His father was Philip Gbeho, the composer of Ghana’s national anthem, and he was an uncle of the late broadcaster Komla Dumor.
Tributes are expected from government officials, diplomats, and international organisations in recognition of his decades of service to Ghana and the wider international community. Funeral arrangements have yet to be announced by the family.
