Prof. William Gariba Akanwariwiak is a Microbiologist with research interests in Medical Microbiology. He was admitted into the Department of Biological Sciences (now Theoretical and Applied Biology) since 1982 where he obtained his BSc Biological sciences in 1987. He was invited by the Department to undertake his National Service for two years and subsequently appointed Teaching Assistant for three months ending December 1989. He pursued graduate studies leading to the award of Master of Philosophy degree in Biological Sciences in 1992 and was appointed lecturer at KNUST in 1993. He subsequently earned his promotion to the rank of Senior Lecturer in 2005 and Associate Professor in 2016. He was first Head of Department from 2008 to 2010 and now Head of Department since August 2020. He was the Honorary Secretary of the Ghana Science Association of the Kumasi Branch from 1998 to 2001. He was also a Member of the National Executive Committee of the Ghana Science Association from 1998 to 2001. He was elected National Secretary of the Ghana Science Association from 2009 to 2011 and by virtue of this position was a Member and Secretary of the National Executive Committee of the Ghana Science Association from 2009 to 2011. He was also elected National President of the Ghana Science Association in 2019. He is currently the Chairman of the National Executive Committee of the Ghana Science Association.

 He served as a member of the University Council from 2011 – 2015, Republic Hall Master (2012 to 2016), Vice Dean students (2016 to 2017 and Dean of Students (2017 to 2019). He has also served on several Statutory and Ad-hoc committees as chairman or member in the University. Prof. Akanwariwiak consults for the National Accreditation Board and National Council for Tertiary Education, now called Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC). He is the Chairman of the University Examinations Audit Committee a job he has done for two (2) decades (both KNUST and all of its Affiliate Institutions).

His research interests on medical microbiology includes the evaluation of various plant extracts as antimicrobial and antioxidant agents against microorganisms.