Wagura Ndiritu, Simon

Prof. Ndiritu, Simon Wagura is an associate professor of Development Economics at the Strathmore University Business School. He is also the academic Director of Master of Management in Agribusiness, an Environment for Development Initiative (EfD) research fellow and advisor to Kenya Climate Innovation Center Sustainability initiative. He spearheaded the establishment of the Strathmore Agri-Food Innovation (SAFIC) Center where he serves as the Director.  He previously served in the Governing Board of Peace Unit Program in Kenya. Prof. Wagura holds a PhD. in Economics from School of Business, Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. He completed his MA (Economics) degree with the best master thesis. He also holds a Bachelor of Education (Economics and Mathematics) degree (First class honours). Before joining the PhD program he taught at the School of Economics, University of Nairobi, Kenya. He has a broad research interest in Applied Micro- Econometrics, Environmental resources Economics, Climate Change, Economics of Water Resources, Agriculture and Development Economics.

He has worked on collaborative research with CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center) scientists. He recently concluded two collaborative research on PRISE (Pathways to resilience in semi-Arid Economies) Project 3, and structured trading and inclusive value chain participation for smallholder staple grain farmers in Kenya. Together with Boston Consulting Group, Green Venture Africa, he is currently involved on Scaling climate-smart livestock ventures in Africa and Markets Transformation for Pastoralists - Pathfinder & Platform (MTP) projects. Simon has worked extensively on topic such as Climate change adaptation and mitigation, food security, gender issues, Agricultural technology adoption, Applied Micro- Econometrics, Energy, Economics of Water Resources, Livestock Economics, Corporate Environmental performance, and post-harvest losses. Prof. Wagura has great interest in agribusiness and post-harvest management. Simon has engaged in coaching business entrepreneurs in the livestock value chain especially feedlot entrepreneurs in Taita Taveta, Garissa and Laikipia Counties, and poultry SMEs in Kiambu and Nairobi. Prof. Wagura recently concluded One health policy dialogue with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (“FAO”) where he assisted in understanding the private sector and what incentives they need to adopt good practices along the poultry value chain. The study was specifically on implications of adoption of good practices on business models, profitability, and bankability along the poultry value chain for the urban and peri urban in Kiambu and Nairobi City Counties. Wagura has won several prestigious scholarships and awards. For instance, The African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) Academic Board prize for the best Master’s thesis in the 2006/2007 Academic year and the best gender paper for CCAFS 2011 (Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security). His research work has been published in reputable journals.