The Ghana Standards Authority was known as National Standards Board in August, 1967, when it was couched out of the Institute of Industrial Research (IIR), one of the leading 13 Research Institutes of Ghana’s Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the main Science and Technology Research and Development institution of Ghana.
Under the leadership of GSA’s first Executive Director, Mr. Emmanuel Lartey, who recommended at the time that a Standards Body ought to be made to stand on its own, the Organisation was separated from IIR and located in a pre-fabricated structure at the beach, near the current Management Development Productivity Institute (MDPI) in Accra.
After a few years, the Standards Body was re-located to the third floor of the State House in Accra. From the State House, the Organisation was again re-located to a new place off Tetteh Quarshie Interchange – Legon – Madina Road, near Gulf House, Okponglo where its Head Office is currently situated. Through hard work and a desire to bring standardisation to the door steps of all people throughout the country, the GSA now has branches in all the regions, apart from the Upper West Region for which reason the Regional Office in Tamale has been empowered to superintend over the Upper West.
During the early years of the Organisation – from IIR to the location at the beach and then to the State House and, finally, to its present location at Okponglo – the National Standards Body had a change in its name from National Standards Board in 1967 to Ghana Standards Board in 1973 and, finally, to Ghana Standards Authority in 2011. During this period of chequered history, the National Standards Body was gradually, systematically and consistently shaped into a formidable force in spite of the challenges faced by the Organisation. It is, therefore, the quality of leadership as well as dedicated support from members of staff over the years which has made Ghana Standards Authority what it is today.
Good leadership implies hard work while achievement of organisational goals also depends on dedicated and hardworking staff. It is this army of hard working people at GSA from the past till now – both Management and Staff – who deserve high commendations from the present employees of the Organisation, for ensuring delivery of consistent financial results, attaining high team performance, executing strategy, managing multiple and often conflicting priorities as well as driving the desired innovation for purposeful achievement and also attainment of organisational goals over the years.
Director Generals – 1967 to date
| Name | Period |
| 1. Mr. Emmanuel Lartey | 1967 – 1972 |
| 2. Dr. Robert Oteng | 1972 – 1977 |
| 3. Dr. Lawrence Twum Danso | 1978 – 1990 |
| 4. Rev. Dr. E.K. Marfo | 1990 – 1999 |
| 5. Mr. Kwasi Nkansah | 1999 – 2001 |
| 6. Mr. Alex Ntiforo | 2001 – 2003 |
| 7. Mr. Nimo Ahemkorah | 2003 – 2004 |
| 8. Mr. Larry Ezura Yankey | 2004 – 2005 |
| 9. Mr. Adu Gyamfi Darkwa | 2005 – 2010 |
| 10. Dr. George B. Crentsil | 2010 – 2017 |
| 11. Prof. Alex Dodoo | 2017 to date |