Carmen Pereira

Who is Carmen Pereira?

Carmen Pereira was born in 1936 in Portuguese Guinea, the daughter of one of the colony's few African lawyers. She joined the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) in 1962 and became the only woman elected to the party's Executive Committee during the war of independence, organizing support networks and mobilizing women within the liberated zones. She was forced into exile at points during the conflict and also studied in the Soviet Union. After independence in 1974 she remained a leading PAIGC figure, serving as Deputy President of the National People's Assembly from 1973 to 1984 and chairing the Assembly for much of that period; she also served as Minister of Health and Social Affairs from 1981 to 1983. When a new constitution took effect in May 1984, her position as head of the Assembly briefly made her Acting President of Guinea-Bissau from 14 to 16 May 1984, making her the first woman to serve as a head of state anywhere in Africa. She died in 2016.

Sources: Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History, "Pereira, Carmen" · African Women in Leadership Narratives, "Carmen Pereira: First Female Head of State in Africa"