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Dr. Jones has dedicated his career in Africa to agronomic research, technology exchange, and scaling up initiatives. Beginning in Botswana, his focus on farming systems research near the Okavango Delta led to a PhD in 1989. Subsequently, he was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship by the Rockefeller Foundation, moving to Malawi to conduct agronomic research on maize and agroforestry, with a strong emphasis on soil fertility. In 1996, he joined the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) as a Technology Exchange Specialist, promoting improved pigeonpea varieties in eastern and southern Africa. His work also extended to the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC) and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), focusing on ensuring smallholder farmers’ access to research-generated products and knowledge. His recent assignment, funded by USAID and implemented by AGRA, involved scaling up seeds, mineral fertilizers, and complementary inputs in commercially sustainable ways, addressing policy constraints hindering effective scaling. Notably, his presentation at a symposium on Somali Agriculture in 2001 led to the establishment of SATG and Filsan, reflecting his significant contributions to agricultural development in Africa.

Dr. Hussein Haji, Ph.D., has served for twenty years with the Ministry of Agriculture in Somalia. He worked as Senior Researcher and a lecturer of Genetics and Plant Breeding at the Somali National University. He has also served as the coordinator of the national sorghum improvement program and director of the central agriculture research station. He travelled to Canada where he obtained his Ph.D. in Genetics and Plant Breeding at the University of Guelph. Soon after his graduation, he joined Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, where he served for 10 years as a lead scientist in the tobacco breeding and biotechnology department. During his service, he developed both open pollinated as well as hybrid varieties of tobacco using state-of-the-art technologies. While working with Agriculture Canada, Haji joined other agriculture professionals in founding the Somali Agricultural Technical Group (SATG).

Dr. Paul retired in 2020 from the University of Minnesota after 25 years of service as a cropping systems agronomist. His research included crop rotations, alternative crop systems, rye as a cover crop, and agroecosystem analysis. Before completing his M.S. and Ph.D. in Agronomy at the University of Illinois, he was a Peace Corps volunteer in Zaire (now the DRC). In the mid-1980s Paul worked with the “Wyoming Team” on the Bay Region Agricultural Development Project in Baidoa, Somalia. Following that he worked with Clemson University for five years before moving to Minnesota. During his career he held research, extension and teaching appointments. Since retirement he serves as a consultant for FAO on the Somali Food Systems Assessment. He is a very active SATG Board of Director since its creation in 2001.

Dr. Mohamud holds a bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Sciences with Economics Major from the University of Perugia, Italy, an MSc in Agricultural Economics from Imperial College London, UK, and a PhD in Agri-Environmental Economics from the University of Kent, UK. With over 25 years of experience in development, the food industry, public policymaking, and research in the UK, as well as consultancy in the Horn of Africa region, he has managed technical systems and projects in the food industry targeting new markets and conducted assessments and evaluations of public policy interventions. His expertise includes econometric analysis of food demand, economic modeling of regulation, and environmental valuation. Dr. Mohamud has collaborated with UN agencies, the World Bank, and the European Union on projects aimed at improving food security, economic recovery, and resilience in agriculture and the environment, with numerous publications in leading academic journals.

Dr. Kassim has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Engineering (King Abdelaziz University Jeddah, Saudi Arabia), Master of Arts (York University Toronto, Canada) and Ph.D. (Intellectual History, History of the Local Production of Knowledge, and Women and Knowledge-Engendered Power York University, Toronto, Canada). He is currently a Professor at Seneca Polytechnic in Toronto Canada where he is tasked with the development and delivering of curriculum that reflects the latest trends and best practices in the Information Technology field. He has successfully designed and implemented comprehensive projects that bridge theoretical knowledge with practical application, enhancing students’ ability to grasp and apply complex concepts. Some of the courses he teaches include: Systems Analysis and Design, Project Management, Capstone Projects Supervision, Computer Programming, Business Requirements Analysis Using Object Oriented Models, and Database Design. Dr. Kassim has previously lectured in University of Toronto at Mississauga and Brock University.