Board of Directors

Coming soon

Coming soon

Mathabo is a horticulture and livestock farmer with diverse experiences including in governance, leadership, community development, diplomacy and international relations. 

Governance and Leadership: Mathabo was appointed to the position of CCARDESA board, representing Civil Society in June 2025. 

Other Appointments: Mathabo is serving as the new Civil Society Organizations Steering Committee member for Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) since August 2025. She is an elected president for the Lesotho National Farmers Union (LENAFU) since 2021. She is serving as non-excecutive director for Southern African Confederation of Agriculture Unions (SACAU) and non-excecutive director for Millennium Compact Account - Lesotho II. 

Past Board Appointments: She has held the position of non-excecutive director for Lets'eng Diamonds Mine (Lesotho's largest mine) and served as a member of the Audit and Corporate Social Responsibility + Investment Committees (2021-2023). 

Diplomatic and International Relations: Her Excellency Dr. Mathabo Tsepa served as the High Commissioner of Lesotho to Canada, Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago (2010 - 2016). She also served 6 years as the Ambassador of Lesotho to Cuba. 

Academic: A recipient of the prestigious Canadian Commonwealth Scholarship and the American Association of University Women Scholarship, Mathabo holds a PhD in Food Security, Environmental Education and Indigenous Knowledges (University of British Columbia (UBC), Canada), BScEd (National University of Lesotho (NUL)). She taught at both UBC and NUL.  

Reginald Mootiemang Motswaiso has vast experience in Finance, Banking, Business Leadership and Governance. He attended several post graduate executive education programs among others at; Harvard University – Kennedy School of Governance, Cambridge Massachusetts; Leland Stanford Jr University – Stanford Graduate School of Business (Palo Alto); University of Pennsylvania – The Wharton Real Estate Centre; University of Pretoria – Gordon Institute of Business Science; International Centre for Leadership Excellence, Portland Oregon.  

Reginald participated in and attended several seminars and conferences including World Economic Forum – Cape Town, IMF and World Bank – Washington DC, JICA – Yokohama Japan, World Urban Forum in (Kenya, Singapore, Malaysia, Dubai and Vancouver), UN Habitat – (Kenya, Malaysia). He did study tours at the California Silicon Valley visiting BOEING, Microsoft, Hewlett Packard and ENVIRON among others.  

Mr. Motswaiso has held board membership in the following establishments; CIMA Botswana, Branch Chairman 1999-2006; CIMA Southern Africa Council, board member 2000-2006; Public Enterprises Evaluation an Privatisation Agency (PEEPA), Chairman of FAC; Standard Chartered Bank Botswana, Chairman of FAC; Botswana Stock Exchange, FAC, Risk committee; Africa Union for Housing Finance, member 2005-2009, Chairman 2010-2015; SADC (Development Finance Resource Centre), Chairman FAC 2015-2019; Sefalana Holdings, Chairman FAC, Risk Committee; Stanbic Bank Botswana, member of Finance and Audit Committee. Currently he serves on the boards of Foods Botswana (PTY) Ltd, Sefalana Cash and Carry (PTY) Ltd, Meybeernick (PTY) Ltd, Sefremit (PTY) Ltd as an Independ non-Executive Director.  

He started his career at University of Botswana in the finance department where he worked from 1989 - 1999 then he joined Standard Chartered Bank Botswana where he worked as Manager Finance. He joined Botswana Housing Corporation (BHC) as Finance Director in 2000, then divisional Director for Finance, IT, HR and Procurement. In 2007 he was appointed Chief Executive Officer of BHC until retirement in 2021.  

Reginald graduated from university of Botswana (BComm) in 1989. He studied at Emile Wolfe AT Foulkes Lynch Group in London, UK where he passed as a Chartered Certified Accountant later attaining Association ship (ACCA) followed by Fellowship (FCCA). At the same college he studied and passed as a Chartered Management Accountant obtaining Association ship (ACMA) later CGMA (Chartered Global Management Accountant).

Mr Domingos Gove  is trained as Marine Ecologist, with specialisation in Marine Crustaceans (University Eduardo Mondlane – (i) Marine Biology, Mozambique; University of Gothenburg – (ii) Marine Zoology, Sweden; University of Lisbon – (iii) Marine Crustaceans, Portugal).

Professionally, he has been the (i) Head of Marine Biological Station of Inhaca Island, Mozambique; (ii) Lecturer of General and Marine Ecology at University Eduardo Mondlane, Mozambique; (iii) Principal Technical Advisor for the Integrated Coastal Zone Management Programme, Ministry for Coordination of Environmental Affairs, Mozambique; (iv) Director of National Fisheries Research Institute, Mozambique; (v) Regional Marine Coordinator for Western Indian Ocean Region (mainland East Africa, Indian Ocean Island States, and Asia), WWF Coastal East Africa Global Initiative, Tanzania; (vi) Director of RARE, an American NGO working in Natural Resources Conservation, Mozambique; and (vii) Director of Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources, SADC, Botswana.

Experience: He has more than 32 years of working experience, in the areas of Coastal and Marine Resources Management, Conservation and Protection (Coastal Dunes, Mangroves, Seagrasses, Coral Reefs, Terrestrial and Marine Protected Areas, etc); Institutional Management; Human Resources Management; Leadership; Lecturing; Coastal Zone Planning (Macro-zoning, Strategic Environmental Assessment, Environmental Impact Assessment); Fisheries Research, Management and Governance, including Small-Scale, Semi-Industrial and Industrial Fisheries – Shrimp, Demersal and Pelagic, including Tuna; Regional Fisheries and Marine Resources Governance – South West Indian Ocean Fisheries Commission, Indian Ocean Tuna Commission. Currently addressing regional agriculture (crops, livestock, forest and fisheries/aquaculture, food security), wildlife, environment and tourism policies and strategies".

Mr. Eddie B. S. Hasheela serves as the Director of the Directorate of Agricultural Research and Development within the Department of Agriculture Development at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform, Republic of Namibia. He leads the Directorate, which is tasked with conducting research on adaptive technologies for livestock and crops, as well as offering vocational education and training for aspiring farmers.    

Previously, he served as a Deputy Director overseeing the Division of Crop Research and Production under the Directorate of Agricultural Research and Development. Within the same Ministry, Mr. Hasheela also worked as a Chief Agricultural Scientific Officer, leading an Agricultural Training Institute focused on equipping youths and small-scale farmers interested in crop farming with essential skills. Additionally, in an acting capacity, he headed the Division of Plant Health, tasked with protecting the country's crop sector by ensuring the enforcement of Phytosanitary measures and regulations. He is currently serving as a member of Ministerial Senior Management Team and the Research Ethics Committee within the Ministry.    

Mr. Hasheela earned a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture (Crop Science) from the University of Namibia and a Master of Science in Crop Protection (Entomology) from the University of Nairobi. Additionally, he completed a Management Development Program (MDP) course aimed at enhancing management skills for middle managers, offered by Stellenbosch University.    

He is passionate about empowering farming communities by developing and providing advanced farming technologies to boost farmers' production and productivity. He is also dedicated to conducting research to create new climate-smart farming technologies that address challenges posed by climate change while ensuring food security. Additionally, he aims to make a significant impact on the seed system's operationalization by supporting the implementation of necessary legal framework tools. 

Professional background.    

Wales Singini is a Professor of Fisheries Science (fisheries management) with a PhD in Aquaculture and Fisheries Science, MSc in Aquaculture and Fisheries Science and BSc in Agriculture (Aquaculture) from the University of Malawi. Among many, he also possesses certificates in: Leadership and Management from AWARD LEPARD; Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation from European Commission Brussels; Knowledge Exchange and Engagement from Lancaster University UK; and Governance Capacity for Africa from Beijing China.     

As a scholar, Professor Singini has published more than 80 articles in high impact credible peer review journals indexed in Web of Science and Scopus. He has also contributed 3 books and more than 40 international conference papers.    

Current role    

Prof Wales Singini was appointed by the President of the Republic of Malawi and Chancellor of Mzuzu University, His Excellency Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, as the Vice-Chancellor for the University with effect from 1st July, 2023.     

Wales has also represented Malawi at high level forums such as the Association of African Universities (AAU); Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU); RUFORUM Board; SADC Joint Meeting of Ministers of Education and Training and Science, Technology and Innovation; Southern African-Nordic Centre (SANORD); Austrian-African Research Network Africa-UniNet; Committee of 10 Heads of State and Government (C10) in Africa Championing Education, Science and Technology; and Committee of Installation of the President of Malawi as Champion for Higher Education in Africa by RUFORUM.    

Relevant achievements or affiliations    

Professor Singini has been the principal investigator, co-principal investigator and coordinator of more than 25 research and development projects to his record. Among these, he has led, attracted and secured large international research and development funding such as the World Bank Skills for A Vibrant Economy (SAVE) Project, World Bank ACE II AF, NORHED Project, USAID Transforming Higher Education System in Malawi (THES) Project, IDRC QES Project, Carnegie Cooperation (USA) Project, RUFORUM GRG Project and various small and medium scale projects. These projects have attracted substantial amount of funding and generated new knowledge and innovation.  

Prof. Thomson Kalinda currently serves as the Dean of School of Agricultural Sciences at the University of Zambia. He is a Professor of Rural Development with more than 30 years in  academia. He has lectured several courses and supervised both undergraduate and graduate students. His research experience spans years and disciplines, from social research to environmental research. His research interests include rural livelihoods and poverty reduction strategies; value chain analysis; land tenure changes and local people’s land rights; conservation agriculture; impact of climate change on agriculture, technology adoption and impact, and cooperatives management. He worked as an Agricultural Economist for the Zambian Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries before joining the University of Zambia. He has done consultancy for several organizations, institutions and government departments. These include the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU), African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Overseas Development Initiatives (ODI), UK Department for International Development (DFID), Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN), International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) and others. 

Dr. Elisa Lopes Ferreira da Costa is an Angolan researcher and specialist in agricultural economics, rural sociology, and sustainable agriculture, with over 20 years of professional experience in Angola and abroad. She currently serves as Coordinator of the Sub-component 1.3 of R&D in the SAMAP Project at the Instituto de Investigação Agronómica (IIA), Ministry of Agriculture and Forests (2023–2025). Previously, she was a Social Safeguards Specialist for the APPSA Project (2021–2023), ensuring compliance on research, construction, and environmental-social safeguards. 

Her career includes consultancy roles with Ernst & Young and the Confederação dos Agricultores de Portugal, as well as experience in administration, accounting, and training services. She has extensive academic and research expertise, holding a PhD in Agronomic Engineering (2009) and an MSc in Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology (2002) from the University of Lisbon, alongside a Bachelor’s in Agronomic Engineering (1996, Angola). 

Dr. Costa has published a book and several academic works on agricultural transformation and rural development in Angola, including her PhD thesis “Os Colonatos em Angola: génese, evolução e estado actual.” She has actively participated in numerous international conferences, seminars, and colloquia on agriculture, environment, and rural development. 

She is fluent in Portuguese, French, Spanish, and English, with excellent command of Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.

Aggrey Agumya, a Ugandan national, is the third Executive Director and Head of Mission of FARA coming after Monty P Jones and Yemi Akinbamijo. An alumnus of the University of Melbourne, Aggrey holds a doctorate degree in Geo-Information Sciences. He comes to this exciting position at such a momentous period in the evolution of FARA. Dr Agumya has been a part of the FARA story for the last 17 years when he joined the Secretariat as a Programme Officer of the sub-Saharan Africa Challenge Programme (SSA-CP), a well-recognized continental Flagship programme of FARA. Thereafter, he served in key programme and leadership positions in FARA, including as Technical Advisor to the two Executive Directors. In 2020, Aggrey was appointed as the Director of Research and Innovation at the Secretariat, where he also serves as the de facto Deputy Executive Director. It is noteworthy that Dr Agumya has been closely associated with most of the significant achievements of FARA, wherein he has served at the Director level for half as long as he has been a staff of FARA. Aggrey comes ready with an intimate understanding of the context, configurations, corporate philosophy and partnerships of the agriculture research and innovation institutions in Africa.

Président du Consortium des Consultants Indépendants en Agronomie (COCIA) en RDC, Professeur d’Horticulture à la Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques et Environnement de l’Université de Kinshasa (UNIKIN), scientifique et technocrate congolais de haut niveau avec une spécialité en politique de recherches agricoles, actuellement Directeur de Cabinet du Ministre d’Etat, Ministre du Développement Rural. A récemment été Directeur de Cabinet du Ministre d’Etat, Ministre de l’Agriculture et Sécurité Alimentaire de 2024 à 2025 et Directeur Général de l’Institut National pour l’Etude et la Recherche Agronomiques (INERA) de 2022 à 2023. Il est le co-auteur du plan stratégique de la recherche agronomique de la RDC et l’architecte du plan directeur de l’INERA, respectivement en 2016 et 1991.   

Il a œuvré de 1999 à 2013 au siège de l’Organisation des Nations Unies pour l’Agriculture et l’Alimentation (FAO des Nations Unies) à Rome en Italie, en qualité de Fonctionnaire Principal et Chef d’Equipe qui a coordonné les Secrétariats : i) de l’Année Internationale de la Pomme de Terre de 2008 à 2009 ; et ii) de la Stratégie Mondiale de Développement du Manioc de 2001 à 2006 qui était à la base de la préparation des Initiatives Présidentielles sur le Manioc dans plusieurs pays africains au sud du Sahara. Il est l’auteur de plusieurs publications de la FAO dont « Développer des villes plus vertes en Afrique » et a servi comme membre ex-officio représentant la FAO au Conseil d’Administration de l’Initiative Mondiale sur l’Horticulture.    

Il a également été chercheur au Centre International de la Pomme de Terre (CIP) basé à Kampala en Ouganda de 1994 à 1999 où il a coordonné le Programme régional d'amélioration de la pomme de terre et de la patate douce en Afrique centrale et orientale, au sein de l’Association pour le renforcement de la recherche agricole en Afrique centrale et orientale (ASARECA). A l’Institut International d’Agriculture Tropicale (IITA) d’Ibadan au Nigéria, il a servi comme chercheur associé (doctorant/research fellow) au Programme Racines et Tubercules de 1984 à 1986 et comme formateur (trainer) en 1978, pour le renforcement des capacités et l’encadrement scientifique/technique des jeunes professionnels au Programme Racines et Tubercules.    

Il est membre de l’Ordre National des Ingénieurs Agronomes (ONIA) de la RDC et a travaillé, entre 2015 et 2024 dans dix pays africains, comme consultant et/ou chef d’équipe des consultants de plusieurs missions d’appui, de suivi, d’évaluation et de revue du portefeuille des projets du secteur agricole et rural financés par le Fonds International de Développement Agricole (FIDA), la Banque Africaine de Développement (BAD), la Banque Mondiale, la FAO des Nations Unies...     

Professionnel expérimenté, de grande probité morale à l’esprit vif est un travailleur acharné qui prône la redevabilité, toujours à la recherche de l’excellence et des résultats probants - sera un atout majeur, pour contribuer à la vision et la mission du Conseil d’Administration du Centre de Coordination de la Recherche et du Développement Agricoles pour l’Afrique Australe (CCARDESA).