Sakile Kudita is a Research Fellow in the Agrifood Innovation and Resilience Unit and serves as Team Leader and Country Representative for HarvestPlus Zimbabwe. She is an agriculture, food systems, and nutrition professional with more than 20 years of experience in agricultural research, innovation scaling, value chain development, market systems, and nutrition-sensitive agriculture.
Her work focuses on strengthening food systems through the development, scaling, and commercialization of agricultural innovations that improve productivity, nutrition, resilience, and livelihoods. She has led initiatives spanning seed systems, value chain development, market linkages, private sector engagement, and policy support, working closely with governments, research institutions, development partners, farmer organizations, and agribusinesses. Her work has contributed to expanding the reach and adoption of agricultural innovations among smallholder farmers, markets, and consumers.
Throughout her career, Sakile has combined scientific research with program leadership to advance agricultural and nutrition innovations. Her expertise spans crop improvement, biodiversity conservation, food technology, food microbiology, agricultural commercialization, and market-based approaches to agricultural development.
Sakile holds a BSc in Crop Science from the University of Zimbabwe and an MSc in Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology and an MBA from the National University of Science and Technology. She is currently completing a multidisciplinary PhD with Wageningen University & Research, focusing on microbial ecology and traditional fermented foods.
