Biography

Sabina Silaula (PhD), a female citizen and resident of Swaziland is a private Consultant, Researcher and Contract Lecturer. Her training is in Nutrition, Food Science and Technology. She holds a Diploma BSc in Home Economics from UBLS (Swaziland), Family Resources from West Virginia University (USA), MSc in Foods and Nutrition from Michigan State University and PhD from University of Tennessee (Knoxville, USA). She has a combined experience of over 25 years in university teaching, research and community outreach and service at the University of Swaziland (Swaziland) and the University of Pretoria (South Africa). She has hands-on experience in Project Design and Management in the SADC Region where she worked for 4 years as Regional Manager of the Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP) based at the University of Pretoria in nine (9) Rural Districts in six (6) countries in Southern Africa. While at the University of Swaziland she led the design, implementation and management of the four year outreach program for all four administrative regions in Swaziland on ‘Food Security, Nutrition and Health’. For more than 20 years, Sabina has been involved in a number of outcomes-based consultancy work locally and regionally. Her recent consultancy work includes being a lead consultant in the ‘Commercialization and Processing of Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas) into flour’ (2016 and ongoing); ‘Post Harvest Losses’ (PHLs) of maize grain (staple) in the supply chain - a critical situational analysis and research of the maize value and supply chains in Swaziland (completed May 2016); Trained Trainers in Small Scale Community Based Agro-processing”; Training and capacity building in safe, small-scale community food and agro-processing in four rural communities and to 24 community and extension officers (2009-2011). In this area she has wide-ranging expertise in food product concept design, development and processing; food systems; value and supply chain analysis and development; food safety and application of food quality regulatory and quality standards. Other consultancy work done include inter alia being part of project teams namely: 1. ‘The Evaluation of the relevance, impact, effectiveness of the 3-year Capacity building for civic participation and self -governance, leadership development and local economic development EU-Micro-Projects/Kellogg Foundation Project in 12 Rural Tinkhundla communities in Swaziland’. 2. ‘. ‘Consultant in the EU-Ministry of Education Project on ‘The Development of Unit Standards, Assessment Criteria and Competency –Based Curriculum) for the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Sector in Swaziland’. 3. ‘Internal Evaluation of the School Garden Pilot Project-(OSRO/303/DEN/MOZ) in 37 rural schools in the Provinces of Gaza, Inhambane and Tete. FAO (Mozambique)’. Sabina has also served in a number of voluntary initiatives and societies such as serving as a Trustee, co-Founder and Strategist for the African Food Foundation Swaziland founded in 2007, a foundation created to re-educate the Swazi society on the value of natural and indigenous foods and food resources and; to promote their utilization and increased consumption in the fight against poverty, hunger and disease. She served as a board member, (government gazzeted type of appointment) for the Swaziland National Agricultural Marketing Board (NAMBOARD), 2014 – 2017, a parastal organization that is responsible for stimulating Swazi Farmer productivity, providing a market and a regulatory function for farmers’ produce. From 2014 to Date: she is a Member, of the Rotary Club of Malkerns Valley and the current Club President. Her participation as a ‘Fellow’ in the Kellogg International Leadership Programme (KILP); the Kellogg-Rockefeller Foundations’ Initiative for Development and Equity in African Agriculture (IDEAA); the TECHNOSERVE-USAID Mini MBA course in ‘Believe, Become, Begin’ and, in the numerous other programmes, projects, conferences or workshops have greatly enhanced Sabina’s professional capabilities.