She was the Director of the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana from 2002 to 2009. She is a fellow of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences. She is a Ghanaian academic and author. She is an Emerita Professor of the University of Ghana, and until her retirement in May 2017, she served as the Director of the Social Development Policy Division, of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), located in Addis Ababa