Team size: 7

Career Biography

Bertha Ahenkan Boateng is an experienced Legal and Compliance Leader with more than nine years of post-call experience. She began her career at a medium-sized law firm, Axis Legal, where she excelled on every case assigned to her. Her passion for her work led the firm to refer all cases that required a strong hand to her. She is currently Head of Legal and Compliance and Company Secretary at Amenfiman Rural Bank Plc, providing strategic direction on governance, compliance, and legal risk management across the bank’s 21 branches in four regions.

Bertha actively steers the bank’s compliance culture, training and mentoring her team and other young professionals, conducting conferences, and fostering collaborative problem-solving to drive high performance across teams and support the growth of the bank. Her approach is rooted in empowerment and inclusivity, believing that every member of her team has talents essential to achieving the department’s goals.

At Amenfiman Rural Bank, Bertha has institutionalised structured compliance reviews across branches, implementing standardised reporting tools that enhance real-time oversight and responsiveness to legal and regulatory changes. In transforming the pace at which branches comply with regulatory policies, she employs innovative methods to mitigate legal risks and enhance adherence to evolving regulatory requirements.

Her leadership style incorporates mentorship, capacity building, regular brainstorming sessions, and legal support initiatives that enable her team to navigate complex legal challenges efficiently while fostering a culture of learning.

Bertha’s impact on her institution and the broader legal and financial community is measurable and enduring. She has strengthened regulatory compliance, maintaining robust adherence to legal requirements and minimising operational risk in a highly regulated sector. As Company Secretary, she has enhanced corporate governance by ensuring that Board decisions translate into strategic action plans, improving governance and accountability across the bank’s operations.

While working in the Eastern Region of Ghana, Bertha served as President of the Association of Rural Bank Ghana (Eastern Region Women’s Chapter), where her peers entrusted her with executive responsibilities, reflecting recognition of her leadership within the sector. During her tenure, she used her legal expertise to encourage other women in the rural banking fraternity to further their education, challenging the status quo of male dominance in leadership positions. By the end of her term, all her fellow officers had enrolled in the Ghana Banking College to become Chartered Bankers.

Bertha’s passion for women’s development and her commitment to using the law for societal benefit led her to join the Women in Law Initiative, Austria, which inspired her to establish a Ghanaian chapter. She is currently President of the newly founded Women in Law Initiative, Ghana.

Her career path, from litigation and corporate law to institutional governance, has consistently delivered improvements in legal risk management, operational efficiency, and stakeholder confidence in institutional compliance frameworks. Integrity and ethical leadership are central to Bertha’s professional identity. She is known for an unwavering commitment to principled legal advice, fairness, and respect for the rule of law.

Bertha’s personal ethos reflects a deep sense of service. She believes that empowering women is vital to societal progress. Her ethical compass informs her leadership, mentorship, and advocacy, promoting inclusion and principled conduct across her institution and the wider legal community.

Bertha Ahenkan Boateng epitomises visionary, ethical, and impactful leadership. Through her innovative governance strategies, mentorship initiatives, and commitment to institutional integrity, she has significantly strengthened the legal and compliance framework of her institution.

Have you had any experiences during your career as a lawyer that stand out as  

particularly unique or interesting?

I started my legal career as a litigation lawyer. Although I carried out company secretarial duties for some companies, I had no experience in managing a department. After five years of practice as a litigation lawyer, I transitioned into a senior management role.

What makes this particularly interesting is that I had no prior managerial experience, and my experience in a company had been as a low-level employee. Moving into the new role, I had to provide sound advice on strategy for sustainability, prepare and analyse the department’s budget, and manage people who reported to me.

The most challenging aspect was providing advice to other heads of department on the spot or when the Chief Executive Officer called me into his office for guidance. I had to give at least preliminary advice immediately, with more detailed input to follow later if needed. No one was aware of my initial struggles, because I was able to perform my duties effectively despite lacking experience.

A few months into the role, I became a key reference point for the Chief Executive Officer, who would direct colleagues to me when they required advice. It was then that I realised I was doing work I was truly passionate about, which made the role feel natural.

Those first few months of learning on the job were the most interesting and formative period in my legal career.

Given Ghana’s continued push for sustainability, what measures has your company  

taken to incorporate sustainability practices into its core business operations? How

can general counsel contribute to driving such initiatives within the organisation?

Amenfiman Rural Bank adopts a practical, governance-led sustainability model that aligns financial performance with long-term social, economic, and institutional resilience. This resilience is grounded in the Bank’s core principles, acronymed ICREATE: Integrity, Commitment, Respect, Equity, Ambition, Teamwork, and Excellence. In every aspect of its operations, the Bank maintains these values, ensuring sustainability and growth. Sustainability is embedded into core banking activities rather than treated as a standalone programme.

The Bank recognises that many people remain unbanked and allocates a significant portion of its marketing budget to financial inclusion. It is currently the only rural bank that responds to customer issues and complaints with products tailored to meet their financial needs while promoting sustainability. As the Bank’s main business is lending, the credit portfolio is carefully monitored to ensure prudential benchmarks are met and exceeded. By establishing internal benchmarks above regulatory requirements, the Bank maintains a sustained and healthy portfolio quality.

The Bank actively engages with key customers and stakeholders to ensure they are informed about its products, aware of compliance requirements, and able to provide feedback to support sustainability. With the emergence of ESG, the Bank ensures that, although its market primarily consists of SMEs who may lack familiarity with environmental, social, and governance practices, customers are inducted into sustainable practices at onboarding. This includes guidance on industry licences and other information that sets the stage for ESG discussions without the customer realising they are adhering to environmentally sustainable policies.

The Legal and Compliance department, as part of the Bank’s culture of sustainability, participates in the credit appraisal process to ensure that legal, environmental, and prudential requirements are met. The Head of Legal and Compliance is also a member of the Assets and Liability Committee, ensuring continuous compliance with Bank of Ghana directives and the Bank’s policy framework. As Company Secretary, the Head provides advisory support to the Board, guiding governance and compliance matters.

As Head of Legal and Compliance, I contribute to the Bank’s growth by ensuring adherence to sound governance practices, promoting responsible banking, and maintaining strict compliance, thereby supporting the long-term sustainability of the institution.

What is a cause, business or otherwise, that you are passionate about?

I am passionate about the empowerment of women, recognising the pivotal role women play in shaping future generations. I believe that mothers are the primary educators of children, and that enlightened, empowered women raise responsible, ethical adults who contribute meaningfully to society.

As such, I have championed the building of libraries in parts of rural Ghana through the Ghana Rural Library Project, serving as country coordinator. I also visit schools to speak to teenage girls about the importance of taking themselves and their education seriously. I believe that by strengthening women’s capacity, they not only uplift families but also foster resilient communities and sustainable societal growth.

I am convinced that women’s empowerment has a direct social impact. As such, I make it a point to join all women lawyer organisations within my reach and contribute my share to the development of women.