Essi Matilda Forster was born in Sekondi on 12 September 1922. Essi Matilda Forster was the daughter of George James Christian and Aba Lucy French. Her father, originally from the Caribbean island of Dominica, settled in Sekondi in 1902 after attending the First Pan-African Conference in London in 1900. A respected businessman and private legal practitioner, he represented the Western Province in the Gold Coast Legislative Council from 1930 to 1940. Her mother was from Shama in the Western Region of the Gold Coast.

Essi’s educational journey began at the age of five when she was sent to England. Her determination and academic excellence led to her being called to the Bar at Gray’s Inn in November 1945. Two years later, on 15 April 1947, she was called to the Gold Coast Bar, becoming the first female native of the Gold Coast to qualify as a lawyer. She was also the third woman in British West Africa to achieve this distinction, following Nigerian lawyer Stella Thomas, the first African woman to qualify as a lawyer, and Sierra Leone’s Frances Claudia Wright.

Shortly after qualifying in the Gold Coast, Forster was admitted to the Gambian Bar, where she practised law from 1947 to 1951. She returned to the Gold Coast in 1951 with her husband, Professor Edward Francis Bani Forster, after he was appointed to the Accra Mental Hospital. Upon her return, she briefly served as Acting Registrar of Births, Deaths and Companies before embarking on a distinguished corporate legal career. From 1957 until her retirement in 1982, she served as Legal Counsel for Mobil Oil Ghana Limited, becoming one of the country’s most respected legal professionals.

Beyond her legal career, Essi Matilda Forster devoted herself to public service and the advancement of women and education. She was a founding member of the Ghana International School Committee, serving from 1954 to 1959, and contributed to the work of the Accra Magisterial District Prohibition Committee during the same period. She also co-founded the Accra branch of the Inner Wheel Club and played a leading role in establishing the Ghana chapter of the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), later serving as its president.

Her commitment to community development extended to several other organisations. She was actively involved with the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA), where she served as Vice-President and Secretary of its Hostel Committee. From 1969 to 1972, she chaired the Board of Governors of the Accra Nurses and Midwives School. She also presided over the Ghana Girl Guides and served as a substitute member of the Constitution Committee of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts between 1972 and 1975.

Essi Matilda Forster married Professor Edward Francis Bani Forster, a distinguished psychiatrist of Gambian descent, on 17 December 1944. Together, they raised three children, one daughter and two sons. A devoted Christian, she worshipped at the Accra Ridge Church, where she faithfully served as Sunday School Secretary for 17 years, from 1963 to 1980. Outside her professional and voluntary commitments, she enjoyed walking and giving back to her community through volunteer work.

Essi Matilda Forster passed away in August 1998 at the age of 75. At the time of her death, she was recognised as the most experienced lawyer at the Ghana Bar.

 

Reference: Wikipedia