Dr. Pamela Paparu
Principal Research Officer (Pathology) and programme Leader for Legumes.
She holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Plant Pathology, University of Pretoria, South Africa (2009), Master of Science in Crop Science, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda (2005) and a Bachelor of Science in Botany/Zoology, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda (1999).
Her career as a scientist started with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA-Uganda) at Kawanda (1999-2007).
In 2007 while still pursuing her PhD at the University of Pretoria, Dr. Paparu got employment in NARO as Research Officer II – Pathology and was posted to the National Crops Resources Research Institute (NaCRRI) in Namulonge. She has since risen through the ranks of Research Officer I, Senior Scientist and currently Principal Research Officer.
In January 2024, Dr. Paparu was appointed Team Leader for the Legumes Research Programme in NaCRRI.
She has had professional support from the African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD) where she was mentored. Her career breakthrough came in 2012 when she won the first ever PEARL awards (Projects for Emerging Agricultural Research Leaders) under British Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)’s “Sustainable Crop Production Research for International Development – SCPRID”. With this grant she emerged as an independent Group Leader. She has since won other grants and participated in several projects that have seen her work on common bean pathogens, including Pseudocercospora griseola, Sclerotium rolfsii and Colletotrichum lindemuthianum, Rust, etc. She possesses skills in in proposal writing, negotiation skills, scientific writing and leadership skills among others.
Dr. Paparu is very passionate about solving the problems of those that she encounters in the Journey of life especially small holder farmers. She has gotten to know and understand their challenges resulting from changing climatic patterns, pests and diseases, declining soil health, limited access to improved varieties, lack of quality seed, labour constraints, etc. As the new Programme Leader for Legumes, together with her team, she intends to consolidate the current efforts to address the above constraints, identify new areas of research and innovation, and maintain and develop partnerships that will see the Programme contributing significantly towards achieving the outcomes of the current Development Plan of Uganda (NDP III) and UN’s Sustainable development goals.
Dr. Paparu is passionate about empowering the girl child. Her own life experiences have motivated her to support a number of girls through school, with the hope that they can become independent and support their families and the community at large.
Research Career
Her Mantra is; We do Great Together