Simon is the Executive Director and lead researcher at Kula Vyema Centre of Food Economics, which he founded in 2017 (initially as Agri-Food Economics Africa). He has a PhD in agricultural economics from the University of Goettingen in Germany, and has more than 15 years’ experience in socioeconomics research spanning various topics. He has led many studies, impact evaluations and surveys both at Kula Vyema Centre and its predecessor Agri-Food Economics Africa, awarded by various regional and international organizations. He worked previously at Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy and Development (Tegemeo Institute) in Kenya, the University of Goettingen, and also at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) in Kenya.  He has also undertaken individual consultancies with various international organizations.

Simon is an accomplished researcher in various areas including food systems, food security and nutrition, food environments, agricultural policy, rural development, poverty reduction, market systems, agricultural value chains, nutrition transition, and consumer preferences. He has strong analytical and communication skills, and has published more than 15 internationally peer-reviewed publications (https://bit.ly/googlescholar-kimenju) as well various consultancy reports. He is a member of the African Association of Agricultural Economists (AAAE) and the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE)

Anthony Ndirangu is a Research Assistant at Kula Vyema Centre of Food Economics. Anthony has over 6 years’ experience of data collection. Supervision, Coordination and field report writing. He is skilled in understanding data analysis to effectively interpret findings in a way that makes sense to end-users. He has vast knowledge of data collection using CS PRO, Survey CTO and ODK. He is able to carry out various kinds of research, integrate the crucial aspects of data to provide satisfactory findings. Also, he has the technical know-how in planning, organization, collecting and analyzing data findings, and prioritizing research opportunities. He has undertaken an online course in “ Beginner to Project Manager” at UDEMY.

Anthony has worked with several organization such as Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy and Development, World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) and Alliance Bioversity International (CIAT) as an enumerator in various projects. Prior to joining as a Research Assistant, he had worked with KVC as an enumerator, and supervisor for over 5 years.

Philip is a research associate at the Kula Vyema Centre of Food Economics. He holds an MSc. in Agricultural Economics from Kenyatta University, Kenya, and a Postgraduate Certificate on Food Chains in Agriculture from Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences, Germany. He has over 5 years of research experience in research designing, programming research tools in Computer-Assisted Personal Interviews (CAPI) – ODK and SurveyCTO, training of survey enumerators, data collection as an enumerator (including online surveys), supervising surveys, data cleaning, data analysis, reporting, presentation and writing manuscripts. He conducts data analysis using STATA and SPSS and has training in R. He has published research papers in peer-reviewed journals and presented study results at international conferences.

Philip has previously worked with various organizations including the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Mount Kenya University (MKU)/University of Hull (UH), Effective IPM Association (EIPMA), National Museums of Kenya (NMK). He is a regular member of the African Association of Agricultural Economists (AAAE).

Grace Wangui Mathenge is a Human Resource/Admin Assistant at Kula Vyema Centre of Food Economics, where she plays a key role in managing recruitment, onboarding, employee relations, and administrative operations. She oversees staff documentation, ensures compliance with organizational policies, facilitates training sessions, and supports performance management initiatives. Grace also contributes to maintaining a positive work culture and coordinates logistics for field projects and events.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Management from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) and is certified in Customer Support and Computer Packages, enhancing her digital and organizational capabilities.

Previously, Grace interned at the Postal Corporation of Kenya, where she supported HR operations, updated employee records, and analyzed data for decision-making. Grace is dedicated to creating positive work environments and empowering organizational success by leveraging

Joyce Waithira is a Research Associate at the Kula Vyema Centre of Food Economics. She has over 5 years of experience in data collection, data management, survey scripting, and report writing for developmental projects. She is currently finalizing her research thesis at the University of Nairobi. She is responsible for data management, analytics, survey programming, and contributing to KVC’s various research outputs. She has knowledge and experience in STATA and R for data management and analytics and possesses skills in survey programming using Survey CTO, ODK, Kobo Toolbox, and CSPro.

Before joining the KVC team, Joyce worked as a Research Assistant at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) contributing to survey programming using Cspro, data management using STATA, and developing and executing qualitative data collection tools. She worked as a field facilitator at Techno Serve and worked as an enumerator in various behavioral studies.