Dr. Kojo Ahiakpa
Dr. Kojo Ahiakpa
Executive Director
Dr. Kojo Ahiakpa is a seasoned agribusiness consultant and intra-Africa trade specialist, with far-reaching expertise in programme management, data analytics and agricultural research aimed at driving agribusiness innovation across the continent.
He holds a PhD in Crop Genomics and Vegetable Science from Huazhong Agricultural University, China; an MPhil in Mutation Breeding and Plant Biotechnology from University of Ghana; and dual MBAs from Tekedia Institute, Boston, USA and Unicaf University, Cyprus, and maintains an extensive publication record spanning crop genomics, plant genetics and agricultural development.
As Executive Director, Dr. Ahiakpa leads WACAAD’s work delivering specialised agribusiness and apiculture solutions across West Africa, including flagship initiatives such as the Ghana Forum for Beekeeping and Biodiversity Initiative (GhaFBBI) and the launch of the Ghana HiveHoney Collective Mark, which position beekeeping and biodiversity conservation as engines of sustainable rural livelihoods and green growth.
Alongside this, Dr. Ahiakpa is a Co-Founder and Team Lead of Research Desk Consulting Limited, an agribusiness advisory and copyediting firm operating in Ghana and Canada; Co-Founder of ValueFarmx Technologies, an agritech startup using AI and GIS technologies to empower African smallholder farmers; and former CEO and Agribusiness Consultant with the Federation of Associations of Ghanaian Exporters (FAGE). He also serves as Associate Editor for Tropical Plant Biology.
Dr. Ahiakpa has served as Lead Agribusiness Consultant on projects across Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and Cu00f4te d’Ivoire, and as Ghana’s in-country lead for JIC Holdings’ energy and mining initiatives. His career reflects a track record of high-impact collaboration with organisations including the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), African Development Bank, World Bank, USAID, Grameen Foundation Ghana, RTI International/Rutgers University, Aflatoun International, and the Ghana Export Promotion Authority, among others. He previously served as Contract Faculty at Cuttington University in Liberia, and has led notable initiatives including the USAID-funded Excellence in Higher Education for Liberian Development programme and the award-winning Igeza Fall Armyworm App project.
A regular analyst of national and international agribusiness issues, Dr. Ahiakpa combines strategic insight with practical implementation to deliver results across the sector. He has featured on local media (TV3, Joy News, City News, Wontumi Radio, Accra FM) and international outlets including CGTN Business, CGTN Africa, TRT World and Sputnik Africa, and maintains a long-standing commitment to pan-African development, intra-African trade, and South-South cooperation.