Joseph Henry Mensah was educated at the University of Gold Coast (now University of Ghana) between 1948 and 1954.
He proceeded to the University of London in 1954 and studied for both Bachelors and Master degrees in Economics. Mr. Mensah also had a stint at the Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA, and specialised in Economic Theory and Development.
His working experience dates back to 1953 when he was appointed as an Assistant Inspector of Taxes by the colonial administration.
The Senior Minister of Government Business also worked as a Research Fellow in Economics at the University of Ghana between 1954 and 1958. He joined the United Nations Secretariat in 1958 as an Economic Affairs Officer at the Centre for Development Planning, Projections and Policies, in New York.
In 1961, Mr. Mensah was the Head of Agency at the National Planning commission of the Government of Ghana, which drew and implemented the country’s Seven-Year Development Plan (1962 1969).
During the Progress Party (PP) administration (1969-1972), he was the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning as well as a Member of Parliament (MP).
Between 1974 and now, Mr. Mensah has worked in different capacities both at home and aboard. These include Chairman and Managing Director, Development and Managing Director, Development and Management Consultants (Ghana) Ltd; Chairman, Sunyani District Council (1978-1981), and Proprietor of Banka Farms Limited.
Mr. Mensah served as a member of the African Advisory Council of the African Development Bank (ADB) between 1993 and 1997.
In 1996, he contested the Sunyani East seat on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party and won in the Parliamentary elections in December 1996 to become an MP. He retained the seat in the 2000 polls.
He was the Minority Leader in Parliament during the Second Parliament of the Fourth Republic.