Daniel Ahmling Chapman Nyaho

Family background Chapman was born on 5 July 1909 at Keta, a town in the Volta Region of Ghana, to Jane Atsiamesi Chapman (née Atriki) and William Chapman, a merchant and the brother of Chief James Ocloo I of Keta who served as an adviser to the paramount chief of the Anlo state, Togbi Amedor Kpeglo (1879–1906) of the Bate clan. His father, Mr. William Chapman (also known by the name of Klutse) was the son of Nyaho and grandson of Sokpui, chief of Dzelukope. However, after a series of events, one in which he was asked by an American whether he did not have an African name; the other when his son was unable to gain admission into Oxford University the year he applied because authorities of the university mistakened him for an Englishman, and all places available for Englishmen had been taken leaving only vacancies for foreigners and consequently told he would be considered for admission in the next year. He lost his father at the age of seven. At the period of his days in primary school, there were no secondary schools or training colleges in the Volta Region, secondary school education in Cape Coast were also beyond the financial means of many parents in the village. Another reason for his choice was the opportunity of enrolling in the school on a scholarship, thus not paying school fees and also receiving stipends while in school. Chapman decided to return to Keta but prior to his return he wrote a letter to the Director of Education which read: "Dear Sir, I wish to go to Achimota College. If you send me I will work very hard". All hopes of attending Achimota College at the period seemed lost when Arthur Bolton, the head of the Teacher Training Department of Achimota College confirmed that Chapman was not qualified to enter Achimota College under the circumstances. Mr. Bolton who doubled as the director of schools visited Keta to interview candidates who wanted to enter Achimota College from the AME Zion School and the Roman Catholic School and Mr. Jiagge, a former class teacher of Chapman ceased the opportunity to narrate the ordeal of his former pupil to Bolton. Bolton could not help at that moment however, in the same year, the Education Department of the Gold Coast had organised an essay competition as part of the visit of the Prince of Wales to the country and Chapman's essay won the first prize in 1925. Bolton saw Chapman's name and recalled the story of Chapman as narrated to him by Mr. Jiagge and therefore decided to waive the prerequisit Standard Seven Certificate in Chapman's case to enroll him at Achimota College on a scholarship. Teacher training In 1926, Chapman entered Achimota College which was then known as the Government Teachers' Training College prior to 1927. Chapman completed his studies in 1929, with distinctions in three subjects: Woodwork, Music and Teaching, and missed a distinction in arts by a mark. Aside his regular academic subjects, Chapman gained interest and took courses in wood-work, beaten metal work, and music. While in school, he participated in other extra-curricular activities including serving as the secretary of the College Social Service Society, teaching some of the young boys shorthand at the college's Accra Boys, serving as the first prefect of Guggisberg House and becoming the Entertainment Secretary of the college in 1929. He was able to pass both the School Certificate and Teacher Training examinations despite all the engagements. ==Teaching career and tertiary education==

Government Boys' School and return to Achimota College Chapman began his teaching career in January 1931 at the Government Boys' School in Accra. He obtained his University of London Intermediate B.A. in English, Latin, Economics and Geography in 1932. Following his graduation as an undergraduate, he pursued a postgraduate programme in Pre-historic Archaeology prior to his return to Achimota School in 1937 where he took up a job as a senior Geography master. In addition to teaching Geography, Chapman was responsible for other administrative tasks, he supervised students' vacation teaching practice, served as a housemaster, a librarian, the secretary to the Principal's Advisory Committee and the staff representative on the Achimota College Council. ==Eweland advocacy and first UN appointment==

Eweland advocacy While a teacher at Achimota College, Chapman was quite concerned with the social and political issues of the people of his hometown and the Ewe people at large. In 1939 he planned on opening a secondary school he hoped would have been completed and named Keta College. He completed a building started by his brother hoping it would serve as the nucleus of the college. During the Second World War, his bungalow hosted many Ewe people from Togo under French Mandate who had fled into the Gold Coast for political and economic reasons. By January 1945 he had started discussions with his elder brother, C. H. Chapman, Philip Gbeho (also a tutor at Achimota College), S. S. Newlands, an employee of the United Africa Company and others on the ways and means through which the Ewe people of French Togoland could be helped and also united. The maiden issue of the Ewe Newsletter appeared on the news stands in May 1945 and its readers were exhorted in the following words: "The time has come for us to make a careful study of our problems and look ahead into the future. Today Eweland is divided into a western zone under British rule, and an eastern zone under French rule. We feel the effects of the partition of our people but the colonial powers hold the key to the problem. In addition to the newsletter, Chapman together with some friends published the Nuke Xletivi, an ewe publication. These two publications supplemented with publications such as Jonathan Savi de Gove's Le Guide du Togo helped its readers understand the trusteeship system and the problems associated with it. The purpose of the meeting was to send a resolution on unification of Ewe people to the various metropolitan countries of Britain. The resolution stated: "We, the undersigned, who are Ewes from various parts of the Eweland (i.e. Southeast Gold Coast, South Togoland under British Mandate and South Togo under French Mandate) have given much thought to the problems of the Ewe people with special reference to the partition of our country. We have always strongly supported our chiefs in their petitions asking for the removal of the frontiers which indiscriminately cut across Eweland. We deplore the partition of our country as this constitutes a very serious barrier to our social, economic, educational and political progress as a people and we therefore do hereby resolve: (a) That all the international frontiers cutting across be removed and all Eweland brought under a single administration; (b) that the whole of Eweland become a trust territory. (c) That Britain be invited to become the administering authority in Eweland. (d) That representatives of the Ewe people take part in the making of the trusteeship agreement. (e) That a new constitution be drawn up for the whole of Eweland taking due account of our Native Authorities and our political aspirations . We are convinced that this resolution expresses the wishes of all thoughtful Ewes in both the British and French spheres of Eweland. We wish that this resolution be published in as many newspapers as possible and also brought to the notice of: (i) The British Government, (ii) The French Government, and the United Nations." All-Ewe Conference In June 1946, the All-Ewe Conference (AEC) was founded and its immediate mandate was to send petitions to the British government, the French government, and the United Nations. Chapman had then been elected the first Secretary-General of the All-Ewe Conference (AEC). First UN appointment In November 1946 Chapman Nyaho went to the UN in New York with his wife, and children (then two children). Chapman's task at the United Nations was to help analyse reports on educational, social and economic conditions in non-self governing territories. He and his family were the first to move into the residential area specifically built for the UN staff in Long Island, New York. There, Chapman was made the treasurer of an association that was formed by the staff. The association founded the United Nations International School in 1947 and established playgrounds for the children. It also organised international food and dance festivals in an attempt to raise money for the school. Chapman was a management board member of the school from 1950 to 1954. ==Government and diplomatic duties==

Secretary to the Cabinet In 1951, the Gold Coast had made study political progress. The then government made efforts to employ more Africans in the Civil Service in anticipation of political independence. The Convention People's Party (CPP) government which began to share the colony's administration with the colonial government from 1951 began seeking qualified Gold Coast natives who were living abroad to return to the colony and contribute to the national reconstruction. Chapman was offered in succession the positions of Registrar, Vice-Principal and Acting Principal of the newly opened Kumasi College of Technology, Principal Secretary to the Ministry of Education and finally the post of the Secretary to the Cabinet between the period of 1952 and 1953. In 1952, changes were made in the Gold Coast constitution resulting in the appointment of a Prime Minister and also the need for a secretary to the cabinet. Until the time of his appointment, the post had been combined with the job of the secretary to the Governor and this post was held by Gordon Hadow. In June 1954, Chapman returned to the Gold Coast and took up appointment as Secretary to the then Prime Minister of the Gold Coast, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. As an advocate of Ewe unification and the participation of Ewe people in the Gold Coast and Togoland under British Trusteeship, he accompanied the (Regional) administrative Officer of the Volta Region in November 1954 to the Fourth Committee of Trusteeship Council for the discussion of the Togoland and Ewe situation as a member of the British Government delegation. He believed that Ewe unification and Ewe participation in the political advancement of the Gold Coast will aid in the colony's political independence. Ambassadorial appointment Following Ghana's independence in 1957, Chapman gained appointment as Ghana's ambassador to the United States and Ghana's permanent representative at the UN. He was a part of the Ghana delegation to the first Conference of Independent African States held in Accra in April 1958. As an ambassador, he was demanded to implement decisions of the Conference of Independent African States. In executing this responsibility, he led the independent Africa states mission to tour South America and the Caribbean to put present the case of Algeria. In 1959, he became the first vice-chairman of the Governing Council of the UN Special Fund. ==Headmaster of Achimota College and later life==

Headmaster of Achimota Following the exit of the last expatriate Headmaster of Achimota College, the then government insisted on instating a Ghanaian headmaster to steer the affairs of the school. Chapman was then appointed to assume this position in 1958. While at Achimota College, he renovated structures that had not seen repairs in years he also founded a building to help improve the condition of students as far as infrastructure was concerned. He also helped in making some courses being taught then at the school locally relevant. He also served as the vice-chairman of the International Commission on Higher Education in Ghana between 1961 and 1962. The commission was known for its recommendation of the then University College of the Gold Coast (now the University of Ghana) and the Kumasi College of Technology (now the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology) being made independent universities with each having its university Council as its governing body. According to Chapman, he faced a number of challenges as headmaster of Achimota College. He was first concerned with what he termed an "unnecessary interference" of the government in the affairs of the school. Second UN appointment and later life Chapman was appointed Chief of Operations by the UN Secretary-General during the period of the Congo Crisis; however, the government of Ghana refused to endorse his nomination. He was therefore appointed Director of UN Division of Narcotic Drugs by the UN Secretary-General in 1963. He was appointed Director of the Pioneer Tobacco Company in 1967, he held this position until 1970 when he retired on the grounds of ill-health. Between 1969 and 1970, he was a Danforth visiting lecturer for the Association of American Colleges. In his retirement, he spent most of his time consulting for PTC, doing farming in a small scale and, also going for meetings of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences of which he was a fellow. ==Personal life, death and tributes==

Personal life Chapman married Jane Efua Abam Chapman Nyaho (née Quashie), daughter of Nana Nyarko VII, Nifahene of the Peki State in 1941, together they had five daughters and two sons. Death, burial and tribute Chapman died on Friday 13 July 2001 at the age of 92. He was scheduled to be buried on Saturday 11 August 2001 in his hometown, Keta. He was laid to rest with Military honours at the Osu Cemetery. Present at the ceremony was the then president of Ghana, John Agyekum Kufuor, his vice, Aliu Mahama, former president, Jerry John Rawlings and his wife Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings. The burial ceremony was also attended by other public officials; Ministers of State, members of the Council of State and the Diplomatic Corps, Chiefs, Service Commands and old students of Achimota School. In his tribute, which was read by the then Minister of Presidential Affairs, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, President Kufuor described Chapman as, "distinguished statesman who deserved national honours while he was alive." ==Honours==

• In 1960, Chapman was a recipient of the Commander of British Empire (CBE) award (Civil Service Division). • The Agricultural College, Greensbore North Carolina U.S.A bestowed upon him an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree. ==Publications==

While working as an Ewe language examiner for the Cambridge University School Certificate Examination, he observed a considerable lack of understanding of the Ewe customs among his candidates. This resulted in a publication he started together with F. K. Potakey, also a teacher at Achimota College, called Ewe Studies. Together, they worked on another book titled Anlo Constitution, which covered Ewe customs and institutions. He continued with a series of research on the history and geography of the Ewe people and this resulted in two publications by the names: • Our Homeland (Book 1 - A Regional Geography of South East Gold Coast), (1945); • The Human Geography of Eweland (1945). ==See also==