Professor Olubukola Oluranti Babalola (Pr.Sci.Nat., MRSSAF, MASSAF, FTWAS, FAS, FAAS, FISC), is the Vice-President of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), Vice-President of the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD) (Africa region) and the Foreign Secretary of the Nigerian Academy of Science. She is a B2-NRF-rated scientist, an MBA graduate, a visiting Professor at Imperial College London, a honorary fellow of the International Science Council and Principal Investigator at North-West University. She has over 21 years of experience focusing on rhizosphere metagenomics and soil microbiology. She is a member of many editorial boards and an International Advisor to several others. Olubukola has completed the supervision of over 35 PhD and 25 MSc graduates. Her international experience spans the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. Her effort has received many awards, including being the finalist in GenderInSite 2020, Clarivate highly cited research top 1% for field year 2022 and 2023 and SAWISA 2024. Olubukola is #1 in Africa for Soil Science and Plant Nutrition.Emeritus Professor Olukayode Oladipo Amund is one of Nigeria’s foremost Microbiologists. He is the Foundation Vice-Chancellor of Wesley University of Science and Technology and later served as the third substantive Vice-Chancellor of Elizade University, Ilara-Mokin, Ondo State, Nigeria. Prof. Amund specialises in the area of Petroleum and Environmental Microbiology, and his notable research works involve measuring the rate of pollutant degradation using improvised microcosm devices in aquatic and soil ecosystems. He is also an authority in the area of Biotechnology of Industrial Enzyme production. Professor Amund is a ranking member, of several professional bodies including; Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Science (FAS), Fellow, African Academy of Sciences (FAAS), Fellow, Royal Society of Biology (FRSB), Fellow, Institute of Policy Management Development (FIPMD) and African Scientific Institute (FAS).Dr Akinlolu Olalekan Akanmu holds a Bachelor of Agriculture degree from the University of Agriculture Abeokuta in Nigeria, a Masters and Doctoral degree from the Department of Botany (Plant Pathology), University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. His research areas include Soil-Plant-microbe interaction, Microbial ecology and Soil metagenomics. He is currently a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Food Security and Safety Focus Area, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, North-West University, South Africa. Dr Akanmu is a member of professional associations, including the American Phytopathological Society (APS) and International Society of Microbial Ecology (ISME), among others. He has published research papers in refereed journals, attended scientific workshops, and presented papers in several conferences both locally and internationally.
