Dr. Joseph Kwarteng, or Joe, as he is affectionately called, is a senior lecturer in agricultural extension at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. He received his Bsc. Honours degree in agriculture from the University of Cape Coast in his home country of Ghana and taught agriculture at the secondary school level for several years before proceeding to the Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio in 1983 where he studied and obtained his Masters and Ph.D. degrees in agricultural education and extension. Joe also holds a Diploma in Education which he obtained concurrently while pursuing his BSc. Agricultural programme at the University of Cape Coast. Upon his return to Ghana in 1988, Dr. Kwarteng joined the academic staff of the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. Currently he heads the Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension and the Sasakawa Center for Continuing Education in Agriculture of the School of Agriculture, University of Cape Coast.

Joe is a well known consultant in agriculture and training in Ghana and West Africa. He has worked extensively as a consultant for the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Ghana and for international organizations such as The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), The German Development Corporation (GTZ), The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Nigeria and Benin, The West African Rice Development Association (WARDA) in Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), The Department for International Development (DFID), Centre for Technical Corporation (CTA), and the United Nations Population fund (UNFPA).

In 2000, Joe’s passion for agriculture led him and his wife to establish a not-for-profit, non-governmental organization known as the Development Assistance to School Farms (DASFA) to facilitate the development of school farms and gardens to support the teaching and learning of agriculture as a practical, interesting and profitable subject in Ghanaian schools.

Dr. Kwarteng’s interests include farming, giving motivational talks to youth, facilitating workshops and conferences and writing. He has written more than ten books in agriculture and facilitated the development of many agricultural extension training materials.