Aurora Selormey, born in 1931, grew up in Accra’s Tudu and Osu communities and went on to become Ghana’s first female accountant, breaking barriers in a profession dominated by men.

She showed academic promise early and received awards through the Accra Municipal Authority (AMA), which helped her secure a scholarship to Achimota School in 1946 a year before Kwame Nkrumah returned to the Gold Coast.

Her father, a lawyer, nearly prevented her from attending secondary school after a friend advised it was a waste of money to educate a girl, but a female family friend intervened.

The impact of World War II affected Her family, specifically her mother’s family, house close to the sea. 

While at school, Selormey was active in sports, including hockey.

After school, she worked in the accounts department of the Post Office. She later travelled to the United Kingdom, where she trained as an accountant for 3 years, becoming Ghana’s first female accountant.

Within three years, she completed multiple professional qualifications — ACCA, AIA, and ACIS.

Upon returning to Ghana, she joined one of the leading accountancy firms but resigned upon discovering that her male colleagues were paid more than she was. When she questioned the pay difference, she was told she did not need much because her father was wealthy. She immediately wrote a resignation letter, stating she would not work where women were treated unfairly.

She later joined another company and quickly rose to the position of assistant manager. While there, she was recommended for the country secretary position when the incumbent was leaving. The appointment was approved by the company’s headquarters in New York. She will later make headlines in the New York Herald Tribune as the first African to become secretary of the company

Selormey later became one of the founding members of the National Investment Bank (NIB), where she also trained several people who went on to become accountants.

 She served on committees of enquiry and helped investigate alleged under- and over-invoicing by a German company, as well as another committee investigating the Timber Marketing Board. Her contributions earned her the Order of the Star of the Volta.

Her corporate governance work extended to serving as a director on the Unilever board, as the director of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) board, and as chairman of the Audit Service board. 

She also became the first female president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ghana and served as the president of the Association of Accountancy Bodies in West Africa (ABWA)

As the first president of the Association of Women in Accountancy Ghana (AWAG), she offered support and mentorship to women entering the field of accountancy.

Throughout her career, Aurore Selormey combined professional advancement with advocacy for fairness and the development of Ghana’s accounting profession, helping shape both corporate governance and opportunities for future generations.