A distinguished alumna of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi (KNUST), now a Captain in the Ghana Armed Forces, has successfully earned a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree after navigating years of military promotions, international deployment, and a global pandemic.
Captain Elsie Pokuaa Manu began her doctoral studies as the only woman in a class of eight men, she faced the pressures of proving herself in a male-dominated academic space while simultaneously fulfilling demanding military responsibilities.
Weekdays were devoted to national service, while weekends were spent teaching and pursuing research. Rest, she recalls, became a luxury.
“In spaces where I often stood alone, resilience became a necessity,” she said.
While managing lectures and research deadlines, she prepared for and passed her promotional examinations from Lieutenant to Captain. She subsequently undertook the Elsie Initiative Cadre at the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College and later attended a course at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, each milestone adding to an already rigorous schedule.
When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted academic life globally, her doctoral journey at the University of Ghana faced fresh uncertainty. Virtual lectures, delayed supervision and restricted access to research resources became the new reality.
“Through virtual platforms and collective perseverance, we continued,” she reflected.
Amid the pandemic, she again sat for promotional examinations, this time advancing from Captain to Major. Soon after, she completed the Young Officers Course, a six-month combat tactical programme that tested her physical endurance, mental strength and emotional stability.
Another course followed, and she was subsequently selected for deployment to Lebanon under the United Nations peacekeeping mission. Months of pre-deployment training preceded her assignment.
Barely a month into her tour, tensions between Israel and Palestine escalated, drawing Lebanon into heightened instability. For peacekeepers on the ground, uncertainty became routine. Long hours in bunkers, limited communication with loved ones and constant vigilance defined daily life.
“Even while seated on what felt like a powder keg, I refused to let go of the dream I had begun years earlier,” she said.
After a year of deployment, she returned to Ghana, transformed by the experience.
Through promotions, tactical courses, deployment in conflict zones and the disruptions of a global pandemic, her doctoral research continued steadily in the background. There were moments of exhaustion and doubt, she admits, but discipline and purpose prevailed.
