Olagoke Akintola is a teacher, researcher, public health promotion practitioner and community development activist with training in several diverse fields: public health promotion, gender, social/economic development, medical anthropology, addictions/mental health and research methods.

Olagoke joined the School of Public Health in 2021 as an Associate Professor. Prior to this, he held appointments as Honorary Senior Lecturer, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa (2017-). Adjunct Professor at the School of Social Human and Social Development, Nipissing University, North Bay, Ontario, Canada (2014-2019), and Visiting Professor, Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis (CHEPA), Department of Health Evidence and Impact (HEI), McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada (2013-2014) His primary teaching and research interests are in critical global public health promotion. Olagoke’s broad research interests are in the intersections of power, health and health services development, delivery & uptake in low and middle income countries. His current research is on primary health services delivery and uptake among school-going children in marginalized communities in South Africa, health journalism in South Africa, access to HIV services among MSM in Botswana and the development of scholarship on health promotion.

Olagoke has held a number of positions in international advisory groups, committees and initiatives including Associate Editor, BMC Public health, Global Health Section (2018-2019), Director & Board Member, International Association for Feminist Economics (IAFFE), Nebraska, USA (2013-2015), Member, United Nations Expert Group on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights (2013) Member, Expert Group on the Global Financial Crisis and its Implications for Women convened by the United Nations (Office of the Special Assistant to the Secretary General of the United Nations on Gender (2010); Member & Rapporteur, UN Expert Group on the Equal Sharing of Responsibilities between Men and Women including in the context of HIV/AIDS; Appointed as Expert by the Secretary General of the United Nations (2009). Prof. Akintola is rated as a C3 scientist by the National Research Foundation of South Africa.

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