Dr. Pius Chilonda has over 12 years’ experience in agricultural and rural policy development at international, regional, national and
sub-national levels. Over this period he has acquired considerable experience in agriculture and rural development practice,
agricultural policy research and analysis, as well, the design and implementation of knowledge management and support systems.
From 2006- 2009 he worked as the Sub-regional Coordinator for the Regional Strategic Analysis and Knowledge Support System
for Southern Africa (ReSAKSS-SA) which is part of an Africa-wide multi-center CGIAR initiative involving IFPRI, IWMI, ILRI and IITA.
ReSAKSS-SA targets the identification and assessment of best-bet strategic options for agricultural growth and development in
Africa particularly those contributing most to the objectives of the Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme
(CAADP) of increasing growth to 6% and halving poverty and hunger by 2015. In this role he initiated and led analytical studies on
monitoring and evaluating agricultural growth, poverty reduction and public investments in agriculture in Southern Africa. He also led
the design and implementation of knowledge management and sharing systems and platforms that facilitate access by the SADC
member states to policy relevant analyses and knowledge of the highest quality for policy and investment decisions.

From Jan 2010, he was appointed Head of IWMI Southern Africa office (IWMISA). In this new capacity he is responsible for
strengthening the IWMISA agricultural water management research portfolio in the region in addition to consolidation of the
ReSAKSS-SA program. Prior to this he worked as Livestock Information Analyst based at the Food and Agriculture Organization of
the United Nations (FAO) from 2000-2006. While at FAO he contributed to the design and preparation regional and country
agriculture profiles, with special reference to the livestock sub-sector, for the SADC, ECOWAS, and IGAD countries. He has also
travelled extensively and undertaken various missions throughout sub-Saharan Africa and is a strong proponent for evidence-based
policy and strategy development. He holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics (1999) from the University of Ghent, Belgium.