The TASAI Board of Directors

Dr. Takemore CHAGOMOKA is a seasoned and passionate agriculturist with a well-blended scientific research and private sector experience across sub-Saharan Africa. Takemore joined the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) in mid 2024 as the Head of Technology Transfer Unit based in Nairobi, Kenya. Before joining ICIPE, he was Regional Manager for Seed Co West & Central Africa Ltd based in Accra, Ghana and a research scientist with the World Vegetable Center in Bamako, Mali. Takemore served as Sectoral Advisory Board Member for the West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI), Member of the Management Committee of the Biotechnology Centre, University of Ghana, and Member of the Business Development and Ethics Sub-Committee of the National Seed Trade Association of Ghana. He is the current Chairman of the African Seed Trade Association Special Interest Group on Vegetables. Takemore holds a PhD from Albert Ludwigs University of Freiburg in Germany. Originally from Zimbabwe, Takemore is based in Nairobi, Kenya.

Cynthia Mathys is the Senior Program & Portfolio Manager at the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability, where she manages a large portfolio of competitive granting programs for Cornell faculty and students, as well as their external partners. She recently served as the Senior Project & Portfolio Manager for the Food Systems and Global Change group in the Department of Global Development. Prior to joining Cornell, she was a Senior Project Manager at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), based in Nepal, managing the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA) portfolio in Nepal and India. She holds an M.P.S. in International Agriculture and Rural Development from Cornell University and a B.S. in Environmental Policy & Behavior from the University of Michigan.

Peter Matlon has worked in international development for more than 35 years as a teacher, researcher, research manager and donor. He lived and worked in West and East Africa, and in Asia, for 25 years with several organizations including two international agricultural research centers, the United Nations Development Program, and The Rockefeller Foundation. In 2007 he retired as Managing Director with Rockefeller, based in Nairobi, Kenya, where he directed all Foundation programs throughout Africa. During his career, he also served on a number of global advisory panels including the United Nations Millennium Program Hunger Task Force and the InterAcademy Council Panel on African Agriculture. He is currently an Adjunct Professor in Cornell University's Applied Economics and Management Department, former Board Chair of the CGIAR agricultural research center AfricaRice, and serves on the boards and advisory committees of several other US and African institutions. Matlon earned a PhD in agricultural economics from Cornell University in 1977, a Masters in Public Affairs from Princeton University in 1971, and a Bachelors of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University in 1967. He and his wife, Joyce Cacho, live in Washington DC.

David Ombalo Otieno is Principal Agricultural Officer and Head of Regulatory Affairs in the Policy Unit, Agribusiness and Marketing Division of the State Department of Agriculture in the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development in Kenya. David holds a B.Sc. degree in Agricultural Economics from Egerton University, and is currently pursuing a master's degree in Policy Analysis and Management at the University of Nairobi, Kenya. David has been instrumental in coordinating, guiding and participating in several agricultural policy reforms initiated by the Ministry and for the agriculture sector. David has also represented Kenya in government efforts to harmonize the legal and regulatory framework of Kenya's seed sector with the COMESA and EAC guidelines.