Apostle Dr. Kwadwo Safo Kantanka, born on 26th August 1948 and died on 11th September 2025 was a Ghanaian pastor, inventor and industrialist who built a rare blend of faith led community development and homegrown technology.
According to GhanaRegions.com, Apostle Kwadwo Safo is best known as the founder of the Kristo Asafo Mission and Kantanka Group of companies, he championed “made-in-Ghana” manufacturing, especially automobiles and trained generations in engineering trades through his church’s practical education programs.
This article details his life, education, career and ministry, the family he leaves behind, key achievements and the circumstances of his death.
Quick facts
- Full name: Kwadwo Safo Kantanka
- Born: 26 August 1948 (Bekwai, Ashanti Region)
- Died: 11 September 2025
- Age at death: 77
- Known for: Founder, Kristo Asafo Mission and Kantanka Automobile (Kantanka Group)
Early life & education
Kwadwo Safo was born in Bekwai in the Ashanti Region into a farming family. He showed early aptitudes for hands-on technical work. After basic schooling he attended the Ghana Technical Institute (now part of Ghana Technology University) and then worked as a welder and technician, including time with industrial employers such as VALCO, where he honed skills that would later underpin his inventions and manufacturing efforts.
Ministry: Kristo Asafo Mission
In the late 1960s and early 1970s Safo combined spiritual leadership with vocational training. He founded the Kristo Asafo Mission (often shortened to Kristo Asafo), a church that emphasizes African Christian identity, self-reliance and practical skills training. Under his leadership the church grew beyond worship to include workshops, factories and community programs where members learned trades (electronics, mechanics, agriculture) as part of spiritual formation. The combination of faith and industry became a defining feature of his ministry.
Entrepreneurial career & the Kantanka Group
Kantanka Automobile
Safo set up Kantanka Automobile to build vehicles better adapted to African roads and resources. From early prototype saloons and SUVs in the late 1990s and 2000s to later pickups and agricultural machinery, Kantanka’s public showcases emphasized homegrown design, local assembly and capacity-building. While some analysts note that parts and components were sourced from partners or imported kits, Kantanka remains one of the most visible efforts to create an African automotive brand.
Other ventures
Kantanka Group and the church’s workshops produced televisions, audio systems, agricultural machines and other engineered goods. The enterprise placed strong emphasis on skills training and local job creation.
Major achievements & reputation
- Pioneering the concept of a Ghanaian car brand and publicly building prototype vehicles that captured national attention.
- Linking ministry to practical vocational training, an uncommon model that blended spiritual formation with technical education.
- Receiving broad public recognition in Ghana as an industrialist, philanthropist and advocate for technological self-reliance. His public persona earned him nicknames like “Kantanka, the African Star.”
Controversies & critical perspectives
Observers and journalists have debated how “Made-in-Ghana” Kantanka vehicles were in practice: some coverage praises the vision and prototypes, while others point out that assembly often relied on imported parts or foreign partnerships to scale production. Those debates did not erase his symbolic role as a tech evangelist in Ghana.
Family & children
Apostle Safo was a family man whose children include Sarah Adwoa Safo, a prominent Ghanaian politician and former Member of Parliament. Sarah Adwoa Safo and the Safo family jointly confirmed his passing in public statements released through the Kristo Asafo Church. The family has asked for privacy while funeral arrangements are finalized.
Death, age & funeral arrangements
Apostle Dr. Kwadwo Safo Kantanka died peacefully on 11 September 2025, a fact announced by the Safo family and the Kristo Asafo Church. He was 77 years old at the time of his passing. The family’s statement described him as a “beloved man of God, the greatest technological icon, philanthropist, agriculturalist and industrialist.” Funeral and burial plans were to be communicated by the family and church.
Legacy: what he leaves behind
A model of faith + industry: Safo’s approach left a blueprint for churches and community groups pursuing self-reliance through vocational training.
Inspiration for local manufacturing: Even critics concede that his work inspired entrepreneurs and policymakers to think seriously about local production and African-designed technologies.
A living brand: Kantanka vehicles and the broader Kantanka Group continue to be a cultural touchstone in Ghana’s conversations about industrial policy, innovation and religious entrepreneurship.
Short press obituary of Apostle Dr. Kwadwo Safo Kantanka
Apostle Dr. Kwadwo Safo Kantanka (26 August 1948 – 11 September 2025), founder of the Kristo Asafo Mission and the Kantanka Group, has died peacefully at 77.
A pastor-entrepreneur, Safo inspired a generation with his vision of faith-linked vocational training and efforts to design vehicles and machinery suited to African needs.
His daughter, former MP Sarah Adwoa Safo, and the Kristo Asafo Church confirmed his passing and asked the public to respect the family’s privacy as funeral details are arranged. Safo’s legacy endures in his churches, workshops and the ongoing conversation he seeded about African industrial self-reliance.
