President John Atta Mills of Ghana has died. He had throat cancer.
Vice president John Dramani Mahama is being sworn in as acting president.
Mr Mills, 68, served as vice-president to former military ruler Jerry Rawlings between 1997 - January 2001.
According to a presidential aide, he had complained of pains on Monday evening and died in hospital in Accra on Tuesday afternoon.
Mr Mills came to power after narrowly winning against a candidate from the New Patriotic Party, Nana Akufo-Addo, in December 2008. It was his third attempt to win the presidency.
His predecessor, John Kufuor, stepped down after having served the maximum permitted two four-year terms.
