Mandla Nkomo started his work in the African food industry straight out of college, working at a dairy company in Zimbabwe. Unfortunately, that job was short-lived because of technical issues that eventually led to the company’s closure.
“We could have used the help of an organization like Partners in Food Solutions back then because we didn’t have access to technical information that would have helped solve the water quality problem that caused the shutdown,” he said.
With that important perspective, and more than 20 years of relevant experience, Mandla Nkomo becomes the new Partners in Food Solutions CEO on July 1, 2024.
Mandla, who is originally from Zimbabwe and has lived and worked across Africa, most recently worked with CGIAR, the world’s largest publicly funded agricultural research organization. He has served as chief growth officer for the CGIAR Excellence in Agronomy Initiative, which has over 80 global scientists and a budget of over $50 million in the last three years. Additionally, he has served in leadership roles for Solidaridad, AbavuniConsolidated, and Technoserve. Prior to that, Mandla worked in private sector agribusiness for many years.
“I’m delighted to be joining Partners in Food Solutions at such a critical moment. Food systems transformation is now an imperative on the African continent. Strong and capable local food companies will be instrumental to the future of African food security and economic growth, which makes our mission all the more vital,” he said.
“Partners in Food Solutions has an impressive track record of helping African companies overcome challenges related to food safety, product development, quality and efficiency, all of which help to unlock growth and scale for a new generation of agricultural entrepreneurs.”