ILRI staff appointments and moves: July-September 2020

ILRI Kenya

Integrated sciences

Esther Mugi was appointed executive assistant to the deputy director general, integrated sciences, in July 2020. She has over eight years’ experience as an administrative professional focused on supporting C-level executives. Prior to this appointment, Mugi was an executive assistant at Deloitte East Africa. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in family and consumer sciences from Kenyatta University and an MBA in strategic management from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Kenya.

Animal and Human Health (AHH)

Rose Manyu was appointed project manager, One Health Research, Education and Outreach Centre (OHRECA) under the Animal and Human Health (AHH) program in July 2020. She has previously served in several capacities: under the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) as administrative and program assistant and in the Livestock Genetics Program as assistant to program manager. She has extensive experience in project management and office administration. Manyu holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Maseno University and a Master of Science in project management degree from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. She is a member of the Institute of Certified Public Secretaries of Kenya (ICPSK) and is a qualified Certified Public Accountant of Kenya.

Geoffrey Njenga was appointed communication officer, OHRECA in September 2020. Before joining ILRI, he served as communication officer with the African Population Health Research Centre and prior to that at Jhpiego, an affiliate of John Hopkins University. Njenga has over seven years’ experience in multimedia content development, and creating and implementing communication, media engagement and digital media strategies. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication from Daystar University.

Fiona Tune joined ILRI in August 2020 as research associate in the AHH program. In her new role, she will provide technical support to epidemiology and control of peste des petit ruminants (Eco-PPR) field activities in Kenya. She will be involved in testing field survey tools, handling data and conducting primary data analysis. She holds a bachelor’s degree in community development from Daystar University, Kenya.

Policies, Institutions and Livelihoods (PIL)

Humphrey Jumba joined ILRI’s gender team as research associate in August 2020 in the Policies, Institutions and Livelihoods (PIL) program. Previously, 2015-2016, he was a graduate fellow under the same program where his research focuses on the link between gender and uptake of the East Coast fever vaccine in Kenya. He has more than four years of experience in conducting household surveys in both livestock and crop systems in rural areas of Kenya. Jumba has worked under various capacities in implementing fieldwork activities for different non-profit (e.g. ILRI, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology [icipe]) and private sector organizations that aim to improve livelihoods of smallholder rural poor farmers through agricultural research. Jumba holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees in agricultural economics both from Egerton University.

Immaculate Omondi joined ILRI’s gender team as gender research economist in August 2020. Omondi holds a PhD in agricultural economics from the University of Giessen, Germany and an MSc degree in agricultural economics from Egerton University, Kenya. Previously, she worked at ILRI as monitoring, learning and evaluation scientist in the PIL program and has worked as a postdoctoral researcher at icipe.

Esther Achandi joined ILRI’s gender team as postdoctoral scientist in September 2020.She has over six years’ experience in research and has worked at the Africa Rice Center, conducting research in Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Ethiopia and Madagascar with close engagement of the national agricultural research partners. She has also worked on health research specifically, sexual reproductive health and rights of women in fragile settings in Burundi. She recently completed a PhD in economics at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and has a Master of Arts degree in economic policy and planning; and a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Makerere University, Uganda.

Sustainable Livestock Systems (SLS)

Daniel Mulat was appointed laboratory manager at ILRI’s Mazingira Centre in September 2020. He will lead the day-to-day operations of the centre’s research facilities. His areas of expertise include analytical chemistry, molecular biology, environmental biotechnology and managing research laboratory. Previously, he was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of British Colombia (Canada) and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (Norway). He earned his PhD. from Aarhus University (Denmark) in environmental engineering. He has master’s degree in advanced spectroscopy from the University of Helsinki, Finland, and another master’s degree in environmental management from the University of Twente, the Netherlands.

Jim Hammond was appointed as scientist – farming systems analysis in September 2020. Hammond designs adaptable research tools which permit multitude of people to gather high quality data and analyses. Jim co-authored the Rural Household Multi-Indicator Survey (RHoMIS), which has been used in more than 30 countries to interview more than 32,000 smallholder farmers.
Prior to this appointment, Hammond worked for four years as consultant and postdoctoral fellow at ILRI and another four years in the same capacity at World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF). Jim has published widely on farming systems, farmer behaviour, life cycle assessment, land use change, greenhouse gas estimation, as well as economic and regulatory assessments for sustainable technology development.
He has a PhD in agriculture, an MSc in environmental science and sustainability, and a bachelor’s degree in social anthropology.

ILRI Ethiopia

Feed and Forage Development

Meki Shehabu was appointed scientist – forage diversity in the Feed and Forage Development Program effective July 2020. Meki joined ILRI in January 2017 as postdoctoral researcher on forage genetic diversity and bioinformatics. He has a PhD in crop molecular genetics from the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research, Cologne, Germany. Previously, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Max Planck Institute and at the Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Japan.

ILRI India

Institutional Planning & Partnerships

Sujatha, P. V. joined ILRI’s New Delhi Office as finance and administrative officer in September 2020. Sujatha P.V has 15 years’ experience working with different national and international organizations in core accounting, legal and statutory compliance, and grant management and partnership management. Prior to joining ILRI, she has worked with the National Foundation for India, the Landesa-Rural Development Institute, Room to Read, and the Deepalaya and National Councils of YMCAs of India. She holds a a postgraduate degree in Commerce from Calicut University, Kerala, and an MBA in finance from Amity University, Delhi.

Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock (GASL)

Shirley Tarawali was appointed as the new chair of GASL – the Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock. She takes over from Fritz Schneider, who has held the position since 2017 and has been instrumental in transforming GASL into the mature multi-stakeholder partnership it is today. Shirley brings to this prestigious role 35 years of in-depth experience in livestock, progressively leading ILRI first in farm research in crop livestock systems in West Africa, followed by her leadership in the areas of animal nutrition and natural resource management and, finally, as assistant director general. In all of these roles, she has been an active advocate for sustainable livestock, through ILRI and more recently through the Global Livestock Advocacy for Development (GLAD) program, finding strategic ways to bridge research and science with development and private-sector actors.