Renowned Ghanaian journalist and war correspondent, Ben Asante, has passed away at the age of 76 after a prolonged illness. He died on August 12 in Accra.
Asante was widely respected across Africa and beyond for his frontline reporting during some of West Africa’s darkest chapters, particularly the civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone. In 1990, he was among the first to break the news of the Liberian conflict, providing firsthand accounts that became highly sought after by the global press.
Working alongside close friend and colleague Lindsay Barrett, Asante risked his life to deliver accurate, on-the-ground coverage of wars that reshaped West Africa. His reporting earned him recognition as one of the most authoritative voices on African political and social development for more than five decades.
Born in Keta, Ghana, in 1949, Asante’s early years were shaped by the Pan-African and socialist ideals of Kwame Nkrumah. As a teenager, he joined the Ghana Young Pioneer Movement, later advancing into student activism through the Ghana United Nations Students Association (GUNSA) and the International Students Movement for the United Nations (ISMUN). In 1971, he was elected ISMUN’s first Regional Secretary for Africa and worked out of the organisation’s Nairobi office, championing youth voices on liberation struggles, apartheid, population, and human rights.
His journalism career began in the mid-1970s while studying at the University of Nairobi’s School of Journalism, where he worked with Afrika magazine, then one of the continent’s most influential publications. After graduation in 1978, Asante pursued a distinguished career, writing for Africa Now, New African, and West Africa magazines, and later serving as political editor in London.
Over the years, he traveled extensively across Africa, covering ECOWAS affairs, liberation movements, and critical summits of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). He was considered a knowledgeable source on Nigerian politics and was deeply involved in reporting the region’s conflicts.
Asante’s writings not only documented wars and political upheavals but also shaped international understanding of Africa’s struggles and resilience. He is remembered as a fearless reporter, a Pan-Africanist, and a mentor whose dedication to truth-telling inspired generations of journalists.
