About Dr Vincent MWALE

Dr. Vincent Mgoli Mwale, currently the Dean of Faculty of Agriculture, is an accomplished Plant Pathologist, Agronomist, and Senior Lecturer at the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR) in Malawi. With over two decades of academic and research experience, Dr. Mgoli Mwale is widely recognized for his contributions to higher education leadership, agricultural innovation and sustainable development initiatives in Malawi. Throughout his distinguished career, Dr. Mgoli Mwale has demonstrated exceptional leadership in agricultural research and academia, serving in multiple strategic roles within LUANAR, including Acting Deputy College Director, Deputy Dean, and Deputy Head of the Forestry and Horticulture Department. His academic journey is marked by a consistent focus on plant pathology, molecular diagnostics, crop protection, and horticultural production systems, with particular emphasis on integrating science, technology, and innovation to strengthen agricultural productivity and resilience. As Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture, Dr. Mgoli Mwale provides strategic leadership in academic planning, program management, research coordination, and stakeholder engagement. He has overseen faculty-wide reforms in teaching and learning, promoted curriculum modernization, and advanced the implementation of LUANAR’s Strategic Plan. During his tenure as Acting Deputy College Director (2022), he played a pivotal role in institutional governance, ensuring quality assurance, performance management, and alignment of academic programs with national and regional development priorities. He chaired several key committees—including Bunda College Curriculum Review when he was Acting Deputy College Director, Bunda College Strategic Plan Development Committee, NCHE Quality Assurance Inspection Committee, among many others. Additionally, he led the successful coordination of the 7th and 8th LUANAR Graduation Congregations (2023–2024), where over 2,800 students were awarded degrees and diplomas.

Research Interest for: Dr Vincent MWALE

Plant pathology, mushroom science, agronomy

Dr. Mgoli Mwale is an active researcher in the fields of plant pathology, horticultural crops protection, and molecular plant science, with over 15 peer-reviewed publications in international journals. His studies explore genetic diversity, disease resistance, stress tolerance, and biotechnological innovations for sustainable crop production. His notable publications include: • Thayo D., Kaderu A., Mwale V.M. et al. (2025). Morpho-physiological evaluation of Malawian common bean lines for salinity stress tolerance. Plant Physiology Reports, Springer Publisher. • Kamanga R.M., Matuntha I., Mwale V.M. et al. (2024). Agronomic efficacy of municipal compost on lettuce and maize. Sustainability, 16(23), 10548. MDPI Publisher. • Mwale V.M., Tang X., Chilembwe E. (2017). Molecular detection of resistance genes to powdery mildew in wheat cultivars. African Journal of Biotechnology, 16(1), 22–31. Currently, he is supervising research work for over 7 MSc and 2 PhD Scholars, he has graduated over 10 MSc and more than 120 BSc students. He has been engaged as an internal research thesis examiner for a good number of MSc theses within LUANAR and as an external examiner for MSc research works for other Universities within Malawi and beyond. Project Management and International Collaborations A seasoned project leader, Dr. Mgoli Mwale has managed and is implementing multimillion-dollar regional and international research programs aimed at transforming African agriculture. Among his notable roles: • Team Lead, LUANAR-RUFORUM MasterCard Foundation ASEC TAGDev 2.0 Project (USD 906,000, 2024–2029), in collaboration with the Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST), Mzuzu University and the University of Livingstonia (UNILIA). • Core Implementing Member, World Bank–Skills for a Vibrant Economy (SAVE) Project (USD 1.3M, 2023–2028). • Principal Investigator, Common Bean Productivity Project (FOODMA, Norway) (USD 98,000, 2022–2025). • Country Leader, Technology Transfer on Sustainable Mushroom Production in the SADC Region (SANBio/NEPAD/AU, USD 86,000, 2010–2012). Capacity Building, Training, and Outreach Dr. Mgoli Mwale is passionate about capacity development for both students and communities. He has trained over 500 farmers across Malawi in mushroom production, empowering rural households to adopt sustainable income-generating enterprises. He has also served as Lead Trainer under the USAID-funded Strengthening Higher Education Access in Malawi (SHEAMA) project, where his mentorship directly influenced youth leadership and entrepreneurship. He has featured in various local newspaper articles promoting sustainable crop production in value chains such as mushroom, ginger, cabbage, tomato, common beans and maize. He has participated and contributed in the development of crop production manuals, Agricultural extension short text messages for vegetables, cereals, legumes and mushroom production, some of which are being used in Southern African Region for crop production. Regional and Global Engagements Dr. Mgoli Mwale is deeply engaged in regional academic and research networks. He facilitated a Scientific Session at the 2nd Triennial RUFORUM Conference (2024) in Namibia and led an AUDA-NEPAD In-country Engagement Conference (2023) on genome editing and biotechnology research in Lilongwe, Malawi. He also chaired the 2025 Regional Consortium Meeting of the Alliance for African Partnership (AAP), hosted in Lilongwe and funded by Michigan State University (USA).

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