Dr Kwadwo Owusu Akuffo completed his Doctor of Optometry (OD) degree in 2011 at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), and obtained his PhD in 2017 at the Nutrition Research Centre Ireland, Waterford Institute of Technology, Waterford, Ireland. He was then appointed as a Lecturer at the Department of Optometry & Visual Science at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in 2018 where he contributes to training the next generation of optometrists and vision scientists.
Dr Akuffo has published over 30 scientific peer-reviewed articles and has contributed to several conference proceedings in his research field. He currently has external collaborations with the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC; South Africa) where he is using data from the South African National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (SANHANES) to investigate prevalence of Eye Disease and its associated risk factors in South Africa. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry (AAO) and a member of the Ghana Optometric Association (GOA). He was recognised for his scientific excellence as ‘Affiliate of the African Academy of Sciences’ following a competitive evaluation process.
In addition to his academic and research work, Dr Akuffo is very passionate about mentorship and the career development of young people. Throughout his mentorship, students have won several prestigious international awards including the Harvard Crossroads Emerging Leaders Program (CELP) Fellowship, the Frans Osterhoff Travel Grants, and the Lois Schoenbrun Student Travel Fellowship.