Her Excellency Merene Benyah is a Lawyer by profession and obtained her legal and post degree professional qualifications at the London School of Economics and Political Science, (London University, (LSE), The Council for Legal Education, UK; The Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn; and The Ghana School of Law. She is a member of the Ghana Bar and the Bar of England and Wales. Merene is a member of the International Bar Association and the Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn among others. She is also a Notary Public and holds an MBA.
 
Merene was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 1979 and has had extensive and varied legal and commercial experience since that time. She has considerable experience in all fields of legal practice and has years of experience in advising major international companies, financial institutions and organizations investing and operating in Ghana. Companies she has advised include Exxon Mobil Corporation, Tullow Oil Plc and BP Ltd.
 
Merene is a leading legal authority in Oil and Gas/Petroleum; Mining; Corporate and Commercial Law; Aviation, Capital Markets and Mergers and Acquisitions(“M&A”), and has received multiple recognitions over her career, including recognition as a Highly Regarded Lawyer in Mining, Oil and Gas, Banking and Capital Markets; Energy and Infrastructure and M & A. In 2013, Merene obtained an MBA from China Europe International Business School (“CEIBS”), in her quest to be aligned with the commercial and financial goals of her clients in order to provide solution-oriented advice.
 
Summary of Work Experience
 
Following a period in private legal practice from 1979 to 1984, Merene joined Ghana Airways Limited in 1984 and rose to the position of Executive Director, Legal /Company Secretary.
 
Merene joined Ashanti Goldfields Company Limited(“Ashanti”) in 1995 and set up the company’s first in-house legal department during the vibrant period of the company’s expansionist and corporate acquisition programme. As General Manager of the Group Legal Directorate, she played a major role in the various mergers and acquisitions that took place in Ashanti. These included the acquisition of Cluff Resources Plc and International Gold Corporation. In 1996/1997, Ashanti was also listed on the New York, Toronto and Australian Stock Exchanges, in which the legal department had a key role to play.  A key member of the Management Team, Merene was responsible for the global legal operations of the Group.
She was appointed as Executive Director / General Counsel in 1996. Following Ashanti’s merger with AngloGold Limited of South Africa in 2004, Merene was appointed as Group General Counsel of the merged entity, AngloGold Ashanti Limited (“AngloGold Ashanti”). She transferred to the company’s Head Office in Johannesburg, South Africa and played a key role in overseeing corporate legal transactions. As Group General Counsel of one of the world’s largest mining companies, Merene was responsible for the Group’s global legal operations and was intimately involved in major corporate transactions including cross border mergers, corporate and capital market transactions and listings that took place in AngloGold Ashanti. Following her return to Ghana in 2007, Merene became Senior Partner at JLD & MB Legal Consultancy.
 
In 2015, she was head hunted as Director, External Affairs and Corporate Social Responsibility at Tullow Oil Ghana Limited and worked in this position from 2015 to 2017.  In this role, Merene was responsible for the company’s external affairs and ensuring optimum stakeholder relationships; including with Regulators, Governments and the Communities. A major part of her responsibility was to ensure sustainability and maintain the company’s social licence to operate.  She led the official launch of the TEN Project. In her final year with the company in 2017, she was ranked as “outstanding” in her performance.
 
Merene was a Senior Partner at JLD & MB Legal Consultancy, Ghana. The Law Firm has been involved in high profile commercial transactions such as the merger between Total and Mobil Oil and the listing of Golden Star Resources Limited and Tullow Oil Plc on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The Firm is favourably recommended by independent international legal rating agencies, such as Chambers and IFLR. To quote the international legal publication Chamber and Partners, “This dynamic firm has enjoyed a busy year in the corporate and energy sectors. Oil and Gas is a particular specialisation, where highlights include advising Tullow Oil on matters including its IPO and the set-up of the first FPSO on Ghana's Jubilee Field. The Firm is retained counsel for ExxonMobil and also represents AngloGold Ashanti. Customer service proves a strong point, and clients are enthusiastic about the team's high quality of communication and fast turnaround times.” In 2021, JLD & MB Legal Consultancy was ranked law firm of the year in Ghana by IFLR1000; and in 2022 was awarded Ghana Law Firm of the year by the prestigious Chambers and Partners.
 
Ms Benyah has served on a number of Boards including The Ghana Stock Exchange; Ghana Civil Aviation Authority; Ghana Air Transport Licensing Authority; AngloGold Ashanti Ghana Ltd and subsidiary companies; Ghana Airways Limited; BP Ghana Ltd.; Stanbic Bank Ghana Ltd, and the Merton Educational Group.