Biography
Eric Yirenkyi Danquah is Professor of Plant Genetics at the Department of Crop Science, College of Basic and Applied Sciences, University of Ghana, and the founding Director of the West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI), established in 2007 through his shared vision and leadership. He holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge and is a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (FAAS).
Professor Danquah has led the training of a new generation of plant breeders developing improved varieties of West and Central Africa's staple crops. He served as Head of the Department of Crop Science, as Dean of International Programmes at the University of Ghana, and as Director of the University's Biotechnology Centre from 2014 to 2019. He is the 2018 Laureate of the GCHERA World Agriculture Prize, a recipient of the University of Ghana Distinguished Award for Meritorious Service, a member of the IAEA Standing Advisory Group on Nuclear Applications, and was appointed inaugural Chair of the Ghana National Research Fund. He also laid the groundwork for the African Plant Breeders Association.
His expertise is particularly relevant to Liberia's priorities in food security, crop improvement and the development of agricultural research capacity.