Dr. Gibson Mphepo holds PhD in Social Learning/Environmental Education from Rhodes University, South Africa (2020), MSc. Degree in Environmental Biology (University of Wales Swansea, 2005), and BSc in Agriculture (University of Malawi, Bunda College/Luanar). He worked in Programme Management for about 10 years at Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD) (2009 – 2020). He has vast experience in conducting evaluations related to climate change and natural resources management and practical experience working in the Malawi Tea Sector in the districts of Mulanje and Thyolo. In 2019, he was contracted by Rainforest Alliance (UTZ) to develop a manual to integrate climate change and environment in the farmer field training manual for smallholder tea growers in Mulanje and Thyolo during which he held consultations with the Malawi Tea Sector stakeholders such as the Tea Association of Malawi (TAML), Tea Research Foundation, and Satemwa Tea Estate. In the same year, he was also contracted by IHD International to do ‘Landscape Mapping of Tea Growing Areas of Mulanje and Thyolo’. In 2016, he conducted terminal evaluation for a four-year Global Funded Climate Change Resilience Programme implemented by Trocaire. He co-managed the Lake Chilwa Basin Climate Change Adaptation Programme which used the Landscape Management approach as a planning, monitoring and implementation tool.

Dr. Mathews Vakusi Madola is a Malawian Economist with Ph.D.in Economics (Univ. of Greenwich, UK, 2011); MSc in Economics (Chancellor College, Univ. of Malawi, 1999); Bachelor of Social Science in Economics (with Credit) (Chancellor College, Univ. of Malawi, 1994. He has undergone professional training in Evaluation of Public Policies: Impact Evaluation (University of Pretoria, 2014), Disaster Risk Management (University of Wageningen, Netherlands, 2010), Gender Mainstreaming and Budgeting (OSSREA, 2010), Advanced Social Science Research Methodologies (OSSREA, 2006), and Poverty Measurement and Analysis (University of Makerere, Uganda, 2002). He is skilled in economic analysis, policy analysis, strategy development, resource mobilization, programme and project design, monitoring and evaluation.

He has over 20 years of professional experience leading program and project teams in delivering poverty alleviation and socioeconomic development initiatives in Malawi and Southern Africa. He is the Policy and Technical Advisor (Consultant) on Development and Institutionalization of Business Incubation in Malawi at Jobs for Youth Project in the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Previously, he led a Team of experts towards the formulation of business incubation policy and legal framework based on the existing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) policy in the Ministry of Youth Development and Welfare funded by UNDP. He led policy review and budget analysis on child poverty disparities under the UNICEF-supported Global Study on Child Poverty and Disparities’ commissioned by the Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development in 2012. The analysis focused on the impacts of the economic and budgetary disparities on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, child labour, disability, health, education, food and nutrition security, income generation, social protection and information. In addition, he has conducted budget sector review for the Child Protection System in Malawi - a study commissioned by UNICEF (2012) and the budget sector review of the Local Development Fund (2011).

He has successfully completed over 20 consulting assignments with Government, international and national NGOs and research institutions, where he has applied economic tools and models in policy design and analysis, program/project designs and evaluation and feasibility studies.

He is a development expert with PhD in Development Studies (Univ. of the Free State, South Africa, 2021), Master of Development Studies (Univ. of the Free State, South Africa, 2018), Master of Arts in Literature (Univ. of Malawi, Chancellor College, Malawi), BA in Social Philosophy (St Joseph’s Theological Institute, South Africa, 2007), Dip. in Philosophy (St Joseph’s Theological Institute, South Africa). He has over 13 years’ experience in development practice and research.

He has designed, implemented, monitored, evaluated and researched on a number of projects in Disaster Risk Management (DRM), climate change mitigation and adaptation; livelihoods restoration and resilience building, agriculture and food security, environment and natural resources management, humanitarian response, health, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH); gender, women economic empowerment, child protection and inclusion of the people with disabilities, HIV and AIDS. Since June, 2020, he has worked as Gender and Social Inclusion Specialist with the Malawi Millennium Development Trust responsible for the development of the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s second compact for Malawi.

Previously, he led CADECOM’s design and execution of community managed disaster risk management, climate change and resilience building, early warning systems, agri-entrepreneurship, gender & women economic empowerment interventions. He is skilled in the preparation of Disaster Management Plans including hazard mapping and disaster vulnerability assessments. He vast experience supporting local authorities in matters relating to disaster risk reduction and management.