Hilary Gbedemah

Hilary Amesika Gbedemah isGhanaian Lawyer and a women's right activist. In 2016, she was re-nominated by former president John Dramani Mahama to serveon the advisory board of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). She is currently the chairperson for CEDAW.

In 1975, Gbedemah graduated from the University of Ghana, Legon, with a bachelor's degree in Law. And in 1977, She was called to the Bar. She obtained a master's degree in law from Georgetown University, Washington. She also holds a certificate in International Humanitarian Law from the Henri Dunant Institute, Geneva,and a diploma in Leadership and Advocacy from Georgetown University.

She was the rector of the Law Institute in Ghana. In 2013, Gbedemah was first appointed to CEDAW to serve for two. years. During her first tenure, some of the working groups she served on include, Access to Justice, which produced CEDAW's General Recommendation 33 on Access to Justice; the Right to Education; Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction; and Inquiries under the Optional Protocol. She also delivered papers at the 59th Session of the CSW in New York and the International Women and Justice Summit in Turkey.

Some of her publications include:

• Trokosi: Twentieth Century Female Bondage – A Ghanaian Case Study
• Rape and Defilement
• Interventions available to Victims of Rape and Defilement
• Safety Planning – Preventing Rape and Defilement and  Enhancing Women’s Representation in Governance through Affirmative Action