Currently the Director of the CSIR-Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG) and a Chief Research Scientist. He is a known tree domestication specialist at the World Agroforestry Centre, International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF) and served as the coordinator of the Allanblackia domestication project in Eastern, Western and Central African Regions.

Dr. (Mrs.) Marian D. Quain holds a B.Sc. (Hons.) degree in Botany with Zoology, M.Phil (Botany – Plant Physiology) and PhD (Botany-Plant Physiology) from the University of Ghana, Legon. Her research interest is biased towards Biotechnology. She has expertise in tissue culture, cryopreservation, genetic transformation, plant physiology, molecular biology, Biosafety and Biotechnology stewardship.

Prof. Victor Kwame Agyeman is the Director-General of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), since January 2015. He is a Chief Research Scientist and also regarded as one of the leading authorities on Tropical Forest Ecology in Africa. Prof. Agyeman holds a B.Sc (Hons) in Natural Resources Management in 1985 from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana. Subsequently, he undertook his M.Phil research work at KNUST under a ‘Sigma (ø)’ Research Grant for Young Scientists’. In 1990, he did his Ph.D at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, U.K. He continued pursuing higher education by obtaining LLB (Law degree) from KNUST, and a Qualifying Certificate/Barrister-at-Law (QC/BL) from the Ghana School of Law in 2012.

Currently the Director of CSIR Savannah Agricultural Research Institute and a chief research scientist. He has conducted research in plant pathology, disease diagnosis, field varietal screening for disease resistance in sorghum, millet, rice, cowpea, groundnut, vegetable crops, cassava and yam, Zonal coordinator of fruit trees in northern Ghana and served as a resource person in capacity building of agricultural extension agents and farmers in integrated disease management. He developed and maintained plant pathology laboratory and a unit for the provision of services and technical assistance in the field of plant diseases to farmers and institutions in Northern Ghana. Built capacity of Plant Pathology staff and agricultural extension staff in integrated pest management (IPM) technologies for control of pests and diseases.

Prof. Mary Obodai is a Food Scientist majoring in Food Microbiology. She holds a certificate in Business Administration from Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, Ghana. Her research interest include among others molecular characterization of microorganisms in fermented African foods and Mushroom Biotechnology. In mushroom biotechnology, she has worked on various aspects such as taxonomy, production of secondary metabolites, utilization and processing, mushroom preservation and food product development. She has over twenty years of research and development experience in technology development, technology dissemination and consultancy services and has contributed significantly to improvements in household and national food and nutrition security.