Nii Narku Quaynor is internationally recognized as the “Father of the Internet in Africa” for establishing the first internet service provider in Ghana and West Africa, operated by Network Computer Systems Ltd.
For over two decades, he has pioneered Internet development and expansion throughout Africa. He was a key figure in establishing several foundational internet initiatives and institutions, including the African Network Operators Group (AfNOG). He also was the founding chairman of AfriNIC, the African Internet numbers registry.
A trailblazer in global internet governance, he was the first African elected to the Board of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), serving as an at-large director representing Africa from 2000 to 2003. He was a member of the United Nations Secretary General Advisory Group on ICT, and his leadership as Chair of the OAU Internet Task Force, and his tenure as President of the Internet Society of Ghana.
Prof. Quaynor earned his PhD in Computer Science in 1977 from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He contributed to the development of computing education by helping to establish the Computer Science Department at the University of Cape Coast, where he has been a faculty member since 1979.