Rita Akosua Dickson (born 1 August 1970) is a

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

ian phytochemist and the first female

Vice-Chancellor A vice-chancellor (commonly called a VC) serves as the chief executive of a university in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Kenya, other Commonwealth of Nati ...

of the

Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), commonly known as UST, Tech or Kwame Tech, is a public university located in Kumasi, Ashanti region, Ghana. The university focuses on science and technology. It is the second public uni ...

Early life and education

She attended St. Monica's Secondary School in Mampong-Ashanti where she studied for her

GCE Ordinary Level GCE can mean: * Galactic Center GeV excess * Gas Control Equipment, GCE Group, Sweden * General Certificate of Education * Global citizenship education * Google Compute Engine * Ground combat element in the United States Marine Corps * Guthri ...

examinations and later

Wesley Girls’ High School Wesley Girls' High School (WGHS) is an educational institution for girls in Cape Coast in the Central region of Ghana. It was founded in 1836 by Harriet Wrigley, the wife of a Methodist minister. The school is named after the founder of Methodi ...

in Cape Coast, for her GCE Advanced Level examinations. She graduated from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology with a bachelor's degree in pharmacy in 1994 and acquired an MPharm at the same university in

pharmacognosy Pharmacognosy is the interdisciplinary scientific study of natural drugs and bioactive compounds from plants, animals, and minerals—originally focused on identifying crude drugs but now expanded to molecular, chemical, ecological, and medicin ...

in 1999. She received her Ph.D. in

pharmacology Pharmacology is the science of drugs and medications, including a substance's origin, composition, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, therapeutic use, and toxicology. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur betwee ...

from

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

in 2007.

Career

Dickson began her career as a lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in the year 2000. After leaving to pursue further studies in the UK, she returned to

in 2007 and continued lecturing at the

Kwame Nkrumah Francis Kwame Nkrumah (, 21 September 1909 – 27 April 1972) was a Ghanaian politician, political theorist, and revolutionary. He served as Prime Minister of the Gold Coast (British colony), Gold Coast from 1952 until 1957, when it gained ...

University of Science and Technology. In 2009 she was promoted to senior lecturer and further to associate professor in 2014. In September 2018, she was appointed the pro-vice chancellor of the

, making her the first female to occupy that position. Prior to her appointment as pro-vice-chancellor, she was the dean of the faculty of pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences. Dickson currently serves as a board member of the Pharmacy Council and Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana. On 25 June 2020,

Kwame Nkrumah University of Science And Technology Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), commonly known as UST, Tech or Kwame Tech, is a public university located in Kumasi, Ashanti region, Ghana. The university focuses on science and technology. It is the second public uni ...

announced her appointment as the first female Vice Chancellor of the university effective 1 August 2020. She is to serve a four-year term. Her work as a phytochemist covers the areas of bioactive natural products in the management of communicable and non-communicable diseases. In June 2024, Professor Rita Akosua Dickson was granted a two-year extension as Vice-Chancellor of KNUST, following a positive review of her first term.

Research

Dickson's research has been mainly about products derived from Ghanaian plants, with special emphasis on those with anti-infective, wound-healing, anti-inflammatory, antipyretic, and antidiabetic properties, based on their ethnopharmacological usage.

Personal life

Prof. Dickson is married with four beautiful daughters. She is a devout Christian.

Awards

Dickson was awarded a

Commonwealth Scholarship The Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan (CSFP) is an international programme under which Commonwealth governments offer scholarships and fellowships to citizens of other Commonwealth countries. History The plan was originally proposed ...

to pursue a Ph.D. at Kings College,

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

, UK in 2003.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dickson, Rita Akosua Living people Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology alumni Alumni of King's College London Vice-chancellors of universities in Ghana Ghanaian women academics Women academic administrators People educated at Wesley Girls' Senior High School Vice-chancellors of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology St. Monica's Senior High School alumni Academic staff of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology 1970 births Ghanaian Christians People from Kumasi Ghanaian pharmacists