Prof Anthony I Okoh holds a Bsc, Msc and PhD degrees in Microbiology from the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) in Nigeria. He also holds 10 other diplomas and certificates in several aspects of Biotechnology and Molecular biology from some reputable institutions on the continents of Africa, Asia, Europe and America. His academic career took a start as a graduate fellow in 1990 at the same University, and in 1992 after obtaining his Master degree in Microbiology he was appointed as Research Officer in the Biotechnology Unit of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research in Lagos, Nigeria. In 1993 he was appointed Assistant Lecturer at the Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria, and rose through the ranks to the post of a Senior Lecturer in 2001, a post he held until he retired from the University to take up appointment as Associate Professor of Microbiology at the University of Fort Hare, South Africa in 2006. In January 2008 he was promoted Full Professor of Microbiology in the same University, and in January 2009 he was appointed Head of the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology to date.

Prof Okoh’s research expertise falls within the aegis of Applied and Environmental Microbiology with emphases on water/wastewater quality, bioactive compounds of health and biotechnological importance, and reservoirs of antibiotic resistance. He has been involved in various collaborations with eminent academics around the world and he has been a recipient of such awards as Postgraduate Fellowship Award, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, United Nations University, UNESCO Biotechnology Action Council, German Government-ITP, UNESCO-ICRO and WHO-TDR fellowships, as well as several grants from the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa, Medical Research Council (MRC) of South Africa, Water Research Commission (WRC) of South Africa, ISRAR/APUA, ESKOM (South Africa) and The Royal Society (UK). Prof Okoh has published over 183 journal articles and presented several papers in international conferences in his academic career of over two decades.

In 2007, Prof established the Applied and Environmental Microbiology Research Group (AEMREG) at the University of Fort Hare, and the group is currently made up of about 30 research students at the Honours, Master’s and Doctoral levels. Prof Okoh has successfully supervised 15 PhD and 22 Master’s degree students to completion and has mentored and still mentoring several junior academics in and outside Fort Hare some of whom as also professors today. In 2008 Prof Okoh won the University of Fort Hare Vice-Chancellor Emerging Researcher medal, and in 2011 he won the Vice-Chancellor Senior Researcher medal. In 2009 he was invited to represent South Africa in the international collaboration on the Surveillance of Reservoirs of Antibiotic Resistance (ISRAR) under the auspices of the Alliance for the Prudent use of Antibiotics (APUA) with headquarters in the Boston, USA. His laboratory serves as the South Africa Country laboratory for this collaboration and he double as the South Africa Country Laboratory Manager. In November 2013 Prof Okoh was appointed leader of University of Fort Hare Water Resources for Sustainable Development Research Niche Area. He is currently rated C2 (Established Researcher) by the National Research Foundation of South Africa and he is the current President of the South African Society for Microbiology.