The Ambassador of Sweden to Ghana (known formally as the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden to the Republic of Ghana) is the official representative of the government of Sweden to the president of Ghana and the government of Ghana. As Sweden does not have an embassy in Accra, its ambassador in Abuja, Nigeria, is also accredited to Ghana.
History The British colony of the Gold Coast proclaimed its independence during festivities in Accra on 3–10 March 1957, and at the same time adopted the name Ghana. The Swedish government had received an invitation to be represented and appointed envoy to represent Sweden at the ceremonies in the capacity of ambassadeur en mission spéciale.
In May 1960, a Swedish delegation undertook a trip to West Africa in which nine countries were visited, including Ghana. The purpose of the journey was, among other things, to provide Swedish authorities with the supplementary information that was needed in order to comprehensively assess the appropriate extent of Swedish representation in this part of Africa. In January 1961, Sweden planned to establish three new diplomatic missions in Africa, including an independent mission in Monrovia, Liberia.
The proposed mission in Monrovia was intended to serve not only Liberia but also Ghana, Guinea, and Sierra Leone. A delegation recommended setting up at least two missions in West Africa, prioritizing Monrovia and Lagos. On 16 August 1961, Sweden's then newly appointed ambassador in Monrovia, Torsten Brandel, was also appointed ambassador to Ghana. Ambassador Brandel presented his credentials to President Kwame Nkrumah in October 1961. He thus became Sweden's first ambassador accredited to Ghana.
In 1967, accreditation for Ghana was transferred to the Swedish ambassador in Nigeria, who has since then been concurrently accredited to Ghana.
List of representatives NamePeriodTitleNotesPresented credentialsRefFirst Republic of Ghana (1956–1966)Torsten Brandel16 August 1961 – 27 April 1962AmbassadorResident in MonroviaOctober 1961Bo Järnstedt1962–1964AmbassadorResident in Monrovia27 April 1962Olof Ripa1964–1966AmbassadorResident in MonroviaSecond Republic of Ghana (1966–1979)Olof Ripa1966–1967AmbassadorResident in MonroviaCarl Swartz1967–1969AmbassadorResident in LagosBertil Arvidson1970–1972AmbassadorResident in LagosPierre Bothén1973–1974AmbassadorResident in LagosKarl-Anders Wollter1974–1977AmbassadorResident in LagosVidar Hellners1977–1979AmbassadorResident in LagosThird Republic of Ghana (1979–1993)Vidar Hellners1979–1981AmbassadorResident in LagosBo Elfwendahl1981–1985AmbassadorResident in LagosLave Johnsson1986–1989AmbassadorResident in LagosGöran Zetterqvist1989–1992AmbassadorResident in LagosArne Ekfeldt1992–1993AmbassadorResident in LagosFourth Republic of Ghana (1993–present)Arne Ekfeldt1993–1997AmbassadorResident in LagosLars Ekström1997–2002AmbassadorResident in Lagos–2003–2003AmbassadorVacantBirgitta Holst Alani2004–2005AmbassadorResident in LagosLars-Owe Persson2005–2008AmbassadorResident in AbujaPer Lindgärde2008–2012AmbassadorResident in AbujaSvante Kilander2012–2016AmbassadorResident in AbujaInger Ultvedt2016–2019AmbassadorResident in AbujaCarl Michael Gräns2019–2022AmbassadorResident in AbujaAnnika Hahn-EnglundSeptember 2022 – 2025AmbassadorResident in AbujaAnna Westerholm2025–presentAmbassadorResident in Abuja
Footnotes
References
External links