Speakers

Biography

Bashir Mayiga is a Ugandan farmer and agricultural scientist who is best known for his work in promoting sustainable agriculture and agroforestry in Africa. He is the founder and executive director of the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), a non-profit organization that works to improve agricultural productivity and food security in Uganda.

Mayiga was born in 1960 in the village of Mayuge, in eastern Uganda. He studied agriculture at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda, and later earned a master's degree in agricultural economics from the University of California, Davis.

After completing his education, Mayiga returned to Uganda and began working as an agricultural researcher at NARO. In 1995, he founded the organization's Agroforestry Research Program, which has since become one of the leading agroforestry research programs in Africa.

Mayiga's work has focused on developing sustainable agricultural practices that can improve food security and reduce poverty in Africa. He has promoted the use of agroforestry, which is the practice of growing trees and crops together on the same land, as a way to improve soil fertility, increase crop yields, and provide farmers with a source of income.

Mayiga has also been a strong advocate for the use of traditional African farming practices, such as intercropping and crop rotation, which can help to improve soil health and reduce the need for chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

In addition to his work at NARO, Mayiga has also served as a consultant for a number of international organizations, including the World Bank, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA). He has also received numerous awards for his work, including the 2004 World Food Prize and the 2016 Norman Borlaug Award for Food Security.