Veteran Ghanaian journalist Ben Asante passes on

Accra, Ghana (PANA) - Veteran Ghanaian journalist, Ben Asante, has died, according to media reports on Monday. 

Asante, died on 12 August in Accra after a prolonged illness, aged 75, the reports said. 

He was one of the the frontline journalists during the Liberian and Sierra Leonean civil wars. He also reported on politics and social development across Africa for over fifty years.

The National Accord, a Nigerian news outlet, reported that Asante worked out of Nairobi disseminating information on the UN and African issues, including apartheid in South Africa, liberation movements and human rights.  

“Asante reflected the voice of African youth on such matters as the Environment and population by organising seminars and workshops within countries  and on regional basis. He attended crucial Organisation of African Unity (OAU) summits and served on the Bureau for Refugees based in Addis Ababa,” the news outlet said.

It added that he became Political Editor for the leading influential African publications Africa Now and New African magazines at different times based in the UK. He also wrote for West African magazine out of London. 

"Regarded as a veteran and versatile journalist among media and political circles in Africa and Europe, he travelled through most of Africa covering events and conferences.

“He wrote for numerous papers in East and West Africa and was considered a knowledgeable source of information on Nigerian politics, having spent over two decades in the country and working on ECOWAS issues, including the civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Asante is regarded as one of the few journalists  whose writings shaped views on the civil wars, especially in Liberia.”

In a reaction, Sando Moore, a Liberian publisher, wrote on his Facebook page: "Facebook friends, today I am in tears, I lost my friend and brother Mr. Ben Asante."

He said he has been completely devastated. “At present I am out of words and in subsequent times I will elaborate more on this grief situation.” 

-0- PANA MA/RA 18Aug2025