Biography
Professor Sidat Yaffa is Professor of Agronomy at the University of The Gambia and Director of the UTG/WASCAL Doctoral Research Program on Climate Change and Education. He also directs the Renewable Energy Potentials in The Gambia (REPGam) Project and has led and contributed to research and capacity-building initiatives addressing climate change, agriculture, renewable energy and sustainable land management in The Gambia and West Africa.
His research and professional work span agronomy, soil fertility and plant nutrition, climate change and climate variability, climate-smart agriculture, sustainable land and water management, renewable energy and agricultural extension. He previously served as Dean of the School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at the University of The Gambia from 2020 to 2024 and has extensive experience in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching, research supervision and the training of farmers and young scientists.
Professor Yaffa has also contributed to national, regional and international climate-policy processes. He served in agriculture negotiations for the Least Developed Countries within the UNFCCC process and was a Contributing Author to the Africa chapter of the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report. His work has included climate adaptation, loss and damage, food security, renewable energy, land-use management and climate education.
His expertise is particularly relevant to Liberia's priorities in food security, climate-resilient agriculture, soil and water management, renewable energy, sustainable land use and the development of young agricultural and environmental scientists.