Benjamin Fataw Bawa holds a Master of Science (MSc) in Development Planning and Management from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi/Ghana and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Community Nutrition from the University for Development Studies (UDS) in Tamale/Ghana. He also holds an Executive Master's Certificate in Project Management (Professional) from the GREM Telecoms Academy in Accra/Ghana.
After graduating, he began his professional career as a Project Officer at CARE International in Tamale/Ghana. He led financial inclusion and resilience initiatives by training more than 1,800 women in Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA), thereby strengthening the economic independence of women in rural areas and enabling further investment in education, health and livelihoods. He also coordinated initiatives to strengthen climate resilience by analysing local climate data and developing adaptation plans as part of the ‘Adoption Learning Program’ (ALP) initiative, as well as promoting cross-sector collaboration with key institutions such as the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA).
Benjamin Bawa then took on a new challenge at Positive Planet International in Ghana, where he progressed from Business Development Advisor to Project Manager. He managed 15 employees in a programme funded by the EU/AFD with 3.5 million euros in the shea and soy value chains and ensured that 76% of informally employed women were enrolled in health insurance programmes. He also developed solidarity funds to reduce dependence on donations and built partnerships to ensure long-term socio-economic transformation.
A new challenge led him to Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) in Ghana, where he initially worked as a Research Associate, leading RCT (randomised controlled trials) projects to evaluate contract farming in 6 districts with over 3,800 farmers and a 74-strong field team, as well as managing the necessary research grants.
Three years later, Benjamin Bawa became a Senior Program Associate in the IPA Global Applied Research Methods Team. He provided significant support in the creation of global research studies that were completed on time and within budget, optimising cross-team processes using Asana, NetSuite, Power BI and Salesforce. His responsibilities also included managing international research events (Chicago, Washington DC, Bogotá) and increasing visibility through multimedia storytelling.
For over a decade, he led effective development initiatives in Africa, the United States, Latin America and Asia, funded by global donors such as the EU, USAID, the Gates Foundation, Sloan and Wellspring Foundations. Benjamin Bawa is your Expert in the fields of Project Management, Research and Change Management, with a focus on complex, data-driven and scalable solutions for agricultural value chains, climate, inclusion & resilience.
- Master of Science (MSc) in Development Planning and Management, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi/Ghana
- Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Community Nutrition, University for Development Studies (UDS), Tamale/Ghana
- Executive Master’s Certificate in Project Management (Professional), GREM Telecoms Academy, Accra/Ghana
- Project Management
- Forschung and Entwicklung
- Change Management
- Complex, data-driven and scalable solutions for agricultural value chains, climate, inclusion & resilience
- Cross-sector collaboration
- Senior Program Associate at Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA, a global non-profit organisation for research and policy) in Ghana:
- Supported the Chief Research Officer in managing a research grant programme worth over 1.5 million US dollars, with 25 worldwide research studies completed on time and within budget.
- Optimised cross-team processes using Asana, NetSuite, Power BI and Salesforce.
- Led grant applications and oversaw budget planning, proposal writing and submission.
- Led international research events (Chicago, Washington DC, Bogotá) and increased visibility through multimedia storytelling.
- Produced high-quality reports and NCEs (National Centre for Education Statistics), which contributed to the extension of funding.
- Research Associate at Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) in Ghana:
- Led an RCT (randomised controlled trials) project to evaluate contract farming in 6 districts in northern Ghana with 3,814 farmers in collaboration with implementation partners such as the MoFA (Ministry of Food and Agriculture).
- Led a 74-member field team, ensuring a 92% follow-up rate, full compliance with IRB (Institutional Review Board) regulations as well as smooth logistics from recruitment to data collection.
- Co-designed SurveyCTO tools (digital data collection) with automated quality checks to reduce data errors by approx. 30%.
- Managed research grants totalling over 490,000 US dollars and secured additional funding of 90,000 US dollars for pilot projects.
- Project Manager/Business Development Advisor at Positive Planet International (formerly PlaNet Finance, an international network with offices in Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East) in Ghana:
- Management of 15 employees in a programme financed by the EU/AFD with 3.5 million euros in the shea and soy value chains.
- Inclusion of 76% of informally employed women in health insurance programmes.
- Establishment of solidarity funds to reduce dependence on donations.
- Establishment of partnerships to ensure long-term socio-economic transformation.
- Business Development Advisor at Positive Planet International in Ghana:
- Strengthening shea producer associations:
- Conducting tailor-made training courses.
- Introducing a price information system for over 1,000 producers.
- Improving efficiency, transparency and product quality in the value chain.
- Support with organic and Fairtrade certification, connecting producers to premium markets.
- Collaboration with the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to enrol 76% of beneficiary women in the informal sector in health insurance.
- Strengthening shea producer associations:
- Project Officer at CARE International (international humanitarian agency founded 1945 in around 120 countries worldwide) in Ghana:
- Leading financial inclusion and resilience initiatives:
- Training more than 1,800 women in the ‘Organisation of Money Saving Groups’ / Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA).
- Strengthening the economic independence of women in rural areas.
- Enabling investment in education, health and livelihoods.
- Coordinating initiatives to strengthen climate resilience:
- Analysing local climate data and developing adaptation plans as part of the ‘Adoption Learning Program’ (ALP) initiative.
- Promoting cross-sectoral cooperation with key institutions (MoFA (Ministry of Food and Agriculture), NADMO (National Disaster Management Organisation) and PARED (Programme for the Adaptation of Regional Agricultural Development).
- Leading financial inclusion and resilience initiatives:
Sustainable development, financial inclusion, gender equality and women's economic empowerment, social protection systems, research and evidence-based policy, community engagement, strategic programme design, football and puzzles.
