I am an agricultural and rural development economist with over 20 years of experience in agriculture, trade and private sector specifically in strategic analysis, program design, portfolio management, and policy in Africa. At USAID I led effort to develop and roll out a $ 350 million Feed the Future program to address food and nutrition security challenges in Tanzania. Previously (in 2009) I developed, negotiated and managed a $52 million policy and safety net program under Global Financial Crisis Initiative in Tanzania. My recent work through Michigan State University (MSU) has been focusing on supporting the Ministry of Agriculture and other sector Ministries to implement research driven policy reforms in Tanzania. The policy research, advisory and capacity strengthening activities have accelerated the pace of policy reforms in Tanzania resulting in reduction of agricultural taxes, relaxation of cross-border food trade restriction, establishment of the Market Intelligence Unit and initiated reforms in agricultural boards.