Dr. Barbara Mugwanya Zawedde has over 20 years’ experience in East Africa agriculture, crop biotechnology regulation, environmental policy and science communication. 

Barbara is currently the Director of Research in the Uganda’s National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO) based in the Mukono Research Institute that serves the Central region with over 10 million people. She is also the Chairperson for NARO’s Institutional Biosafety Committee, and the Committee responsible for developing and implementing biodiversity conservation and sustainable use at NARO. 

Her PhD major was Plant Breeding, Genetics and Biotechnology with a doctoral specialization in Environmental Science and Policy from Michigan State University, USA. For seven (7) years, Barbara coordinated activities of Uganda Biosciences Information Center (UBIC) where she inspired and captured the interest of youth to join the biosciences community through innovative approaches such as drawing and writing contests. Uganda’s youth has been encouraged to join the discourse on how modern biosciences can be effectively applied for national development.

Dr. Mugwanya’s areas of interest include biosafety, biopolicy, bioethics, science communication, knowledge management, and other social and policy pathways to support adoption and sustainable use of biosciences for agricultural transformation.