Joseph I. Okogun, Ph.D.
Director General, IMI Nigeria, Ltd.
Dr. Okogun is currently Consultant Professor of Phytochemistry and Head Scientific Res and Development at Pax Herbal Clinic & Research Laboratories, Benedictine Monastery, Ewu-Esan, Nigeria, and Emeritus Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
He was Head of Department of Medicinal Plant Research and Traditional Medicine (1994-2008) at the Nigerian National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD).
Prior to NIPRD, he was Professor of Organic Chemistry at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, where he established himself as a world leader in Natural Products Chemistry. He discovered several noted natural products including Hypoestoxide, anti-sickling, anti-malarial and anti-convulsion drugs.
Dr. Okogun received his B.Sc. degree (with First Class Honors) in Chemistry from the University of London (University of Ibadan College of the University of London), Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Ibadan, 1967 and DIC from Imperial College, London, 1971. He had Postdoctoral training in chemistry from Imperial College of Sciences and Technology, London working on the synthesis of tetracyclines under the late Sir Derek H.R. Barton, 1969 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry.
He was the recipient of several prestigious fellowship awards including Alexander von Humboldt to work with Professor Gerhard Habermehl’s group at Darmstadt Technische Hochschule and the Tierarzlichen Hochschule, Hannover, Germany and the Commonwealth Academic Staff Fellowship at Imperial College London. He is on the Board of Directors of IMI Nigeria Ltd, and Bevekt Gedu Chemical Company.
Dr. Okogun has trained in the Aromatic & Medicinal Plants program at Purdue University (1999) and is President of the NGO, Okogun Odigie Safewomb International Foundation (OOSAIF).
He is author of over one hundred and twenty publications in peer-reviewed chemistry and Natural products research journals. He is a Fellow or member of several learned societies including the Chemical Society of Nigeria, African Academy of Sciences, Nigerian Academy of Science, Nigerian Society of Pharmacognosy, Royal Society of Chemistry (U.K.) , the American Society of Pharmacognosy, New York Academy of Science and the American Chemical Society.