Dr KAMANGA Rowland
About Dr KAMANGA Rowland
Rowland Kamanga, PhD, obtained a doctor of philosophy in Agriculture from Hiroshima University, Japan in 2021, at the age of 28. He also obtained an MSc in Agriculture from the same university and a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture with distinction from the University of Malawi, Bunda College of Agriculture, presently in its own right, the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR).
Currently, Rowland Kamanga works as a senior lecturer in Fruit and Vegetable Crops Production at the department of Horticulture. Prior to pursuing postgraduate studies, Rowland had worked with LUANAR, and other international organizations on various capacities. These include International Center for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF/ World Agroforestry Center) as a research associate, Natural Resources College as a training consultant, African Development Bank (AfDB) as a 2017 awardee of the prestigious African Development Bank Fellowship Program, where he was assigned to work on the then newly approved Jobs for Youth (J4Y) project and the Agricultural Infrastructure for Youths in Agribusiness Project (AIYAP) funded by the AfDB and implemented by the Malawi Government. Also, he has also received and pursued a World Bank funded postgraduate research fellowship at the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology (NM-AIST) in Arusha, Tanzania. Cumulatively, during these professional exposures, Rowland has gained considerable research experiences and has networked with various local and multinational experts in different disciplines.
Rowland is an also an active researcher, majorly working in areas of plant stress physiology. His research interests are in elucidating plants' physiological and molecular responses to a range of abiotic stresses, including drought stress, salinity stress and saline-alkaline stress. Presently, he has also developed an interest in organo-mineral fertilizer research cognizant of the rising costs of chemical fertilizers in Malawi and worldwide, and has co-founded a research group at LUANAR focussing on organo-mineral fertilizer research and development. Other research interests include fruit crops propagation as a tool for imparting tolerance to abiotic stresses, cross-tolerance to abiotic stresses, Postharvest physiology, sustainable food systems, and agro-forestry systems research. In these areas, Rowland has published several papers in reputable peer reviewed journals. He is also a regular reviewer in areas of Horticulture and plant stress physiology for a number of world renowned publishers like Elsevier, Springer Nature, Frontiers, and Tyler and Francis.
Rowland currently holds a research project portfolio of about USD 400,000, collaboratively working with various stakeholders within the department of Horticulture, department of Crops and Soil Sciences, Nutrition and Food Science Department and the Department of Agricultural Research Services of the Malawi's Ministry of Agriculture. These include;
1. Development of Nitrogen Fortified and Pelletized Commercial-Grade Organic Fertilizer made from Bio-waste for Climate Smart and Sustainable Agriculture, Funded by FoodMa Secretariat, LUANAR, Project value USD 100,000.
2. Participatory Evaluation of Amaranth (Amaranthus spp) Collections for Commercialisation, funded by FoodMa Secretariat, LUANAR, project value USD 100,000.
3. Improving Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Productivity in Stressful Environments of Malawi – An Integrated Approach, Funded by FoodMa Secretariat, LUANAR, Project Value USD 84,400.
4. Composting Innovations Project, Funded by United Nations Development program (UNDP), Project value USD 44,000.