Every year on March 8, the world pauses to raise its glasses to women across the world to mark International Women's Day in recognition of women of all races, backgrounds, and orientations. It is also a Day on which the indisputable biases and discriminations towards women are highlighted, discussed and as much awareness created.

On this day as we applaud the ingenuity, resilience, strength, and entrepreneurship of women across various fields, we put a spotlight on a few names within the real estate space in Ghana. These names have carved niches for themselves across different phases of the real estate industry in Ghana. Today, we celebrate these women as well as all the women who have braved all odds within the industry to impact the next generation.

Nana Akua Oppong Birmeh – CEO of Archxenus

Nana Akua Oppong Birmeh, CEO of the largely female architectural firm, ArchXenus, is a name worthy of mention within the industry.

Motivated by the need to effectively nurture a successful career but also have a meaningful family life, Nana Akua set up ArchXenus in an architectural firm where mothers and even fathers could bring their children and nannies to work and be accommodated in a nursery while the parent works.

“I literally started this firm with my baby in a cot, next to me. Half of my staff have been having their babies whilst working and it’s become something of a ‘character’ of this firm”, she said in an interview with German International broadcaster, Deutsche Welle (DW).

Set up in 2011, ArchXenus, according to DesignIndaba.com has worked on some of Ghana’s biggest multi-residential projects, like Shandonia Court in Accra and the award-winning Tower Cascades. The Christ Temple Children’s Centre, completed in 2017, is another standout project, which also earned the firm an African Property Awards win.

Nana Akua believes that at the core of every design by ArchXenus, is the need to design buildings that impact the environment where they are constructed.

A mother of four, a wife and a visionary, Nana Akua was recognised for her excellence in 2017 in the Forty under 40 awards under architecture/design/décor. She was also recognised in the BBC’s 100 Women initiative, acknowledging phenomenal women from across the world.

Hanna Atiase - CEO of E-wells Realty and Consultancy

With a career in real estate spanning over 20 years, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of E-Wells Realty and Consultancy, Hanna Atiase’s contribution to the sector cannot be overemphasised.

Having developed a career first within the US markets before moving to Ghana, Hanna set up E-Wells with two core mandates:
“Giving those in the diaspora a channel or an avenue for purchasing a home in their homeland, Ghana; and to make sure that the transaction goes as smoothly as possible.”, she said in an interview. According to the Business and Financial Times (B&FT), the realty achieves this mandate by providing a competitive advantage in both marketing and selling luxury properties in prime areas in Accra, Ghana, aligning with its standard of best practices, excellent customer service, customer experience, and professionalism.

Hanna also wishes to “help raise up a young generation of millionaires in Ghana and beyond”. Through periodic mentorships, conferences, and training, with a focus on real estate entrepreneurship and real estate investment, she appears to be making steady progress in the achievement of this. Hanna Atiase is a founding member of the Ghana Association of Real Estate Brokers (GAREB) and a recipient of the Ghana Industry CEO Awards for the most respected CEO in real estate.

Theresa Oppong Beeko - CEO of Manet Group

Dr Theresa Oppong Beeko, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Manet Incorporated is yet another force within the real estate space.

After her first-ever business venture (fishing) failed, she went back to the drawing board by getting herself better educated and skilled. She then ventured next into her real dream of constructing buildings, by setting up Manet Housing Limited in 1994. According to Dr Beeko, she cannot say for certain that she saw how successful the Manet Group would become years down the line. However, she attributes what the business has become to “hard work and single-minded dedication”.

Some of Manet’s growing portfolio of developments, both past and present include Manet Towers A&B, Manet Tower C, Manet Cottage, Manet Cottage Annex, Manet Ville, Manet Gardens, Manet Crescent and a number of others.

Manet has, over the decades, become a household name within the Real Estate industry and a pioneering member of the Ghana Real Estate Developers Association (GREDA).

Theresa Oppong Beeko has been recognised several times over the years for her excellence, including an honorary doctorate degree from the University of Ghana recognising her immense contribution to the Real estate space.

As a player in the real estate industry, we at Meqasa doff our proverbial hat to these ladies especially, on the occasion of International Women’s Day for being the passionate pace-setting women they have been and for the greater achievements they are certain to add to their portfolios to serve as an inspiration not just to little girls around the world but to both genders, young and old! We salute you and others like you we did not include in this article.

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The writer is the Head of Marketing and PR at Meqasa.com. Meqasa is the number one real estate website in Ghana with over 40,000 properties listed from over 230 developers and over 2500 agents.