UG Professor Daniel Twerefou to deliver inaugural lecture

The University of Ghana will on Thursday, July 30, 2026, host the inaugural lecture of Professor Daniel Kwabena Twerefou under the theme, “Ghana’s Stewardship Paradox: Rich in Resources, Poor in Governance.”

The lecture is expected to bring together academics, policymakers, development partners, environmental practitioners, students and members of the public to reflect on one of Ghana’s most pressing development challenges: the country’s ability to translate its abundant natural resources into sustainable prosperity.

Professor Twerefou, a Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Ghana and Director of the University’s Academic Quality Assurance Directorate (AQAD), has built an academic career spanning more than two decades in teaching, research, policy engagement and institutional leadership.

He is widely recognised for his expertise in environmental economics, climate change, energy economics, natural resource management and sustainable development.

Having joined the University of Ghana as a lecturer in 2000, Professor Twerefou rose through the academic ranks to become a full professor in November 2024.

As Director of AQAD, he has led major institutional reforms, including the digitisation of course and lecturer evaluations, the integration of artificial intelligence into teaching and learning policies, and the elevation of the University’s quality assurance function into a full directorate.

Beyond academia, Professor Twerefou has provided consultancy services to several national and international organisations, including the World Bank, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the African Development Bank, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Ghana’s National Development Planning Commission (NDPC).

His work has contributed to Ghana’s climate change policies, low-carbon development strategy, natural capital accounting framework and sustainable development planning.

An accomplished researcher, Professor Twerefou has authored more than 60 scholarly publications and about 70 technical reports.

According to the AD Scientific Index 2026 World Scientist Rankings, he is ranked 111th out of 1,237 scientists at the University of Ghana, placing him within approximately the top 9% of scholars at the institution.

Nationally, he is ranked 343rd out of 7,172 scientists in Ghana, placing him within the top 5%.

At the continental level, he is ranked 8,366th out of 192,097 scientists in Africa, also placing him within the top 5%.

The Index recognises his research primarily in Environmental Science, particularly in climate change mitigation, extractive industries, energy efficiency and natural resource-related research.

In his inaugural lecture, Professor Twerefou will examine what he describes as Ghana’s Stewardship Paradox, the contradiction between the country’s vast natural resource endowment and the persistent degradation of its forests, water bodies, fisheries, biodiversity and other environmental assets.

He argues that although Ghana continues to pursue economic growth through industrialisation, mining, agriculture and urbanisation, these gains have often come at significant environmental cost.

The lecture will draw on principles of environmental economics, welfare economics and institutional economics to explain how weak environmental governance, inadequate enforcement, pollution, illegal mining and poor management of renewable and non-renewable resources continue to undermine sustainable development.

It will also explore practical policy options for strengthening environmental stewardship, improving accountability and ensuring that Ghana’s natural wealth delivers long-term prosperity for present and future generations.

According to Professor Twerefou, sustainable development requires a renewed national commitment to responsible stewardship, where natural resources are viewed not merely as commodities for extraction but as productive assets that must be managed wisely for the benefit of future generations.

The inaugural lecture is expected to stimulate national conversations on environmental governance, climate resilience, resource management and sustainable development, while celebrating Professor Twerefou’s distinguished contributions to scholarship, public policy and higher education in Ghana.