Dennis Makau (QES2014) has continued to be one of the shining stars of the UPEI QES program, for many reasons. His QES-funded PhD program and thesis, entitled “Enhancing productivity and livelihoods of smallholder dairy farmers in Kenya through agroforestry and cellphone-mediated training”, was awarded the Governor General’s Award for best PhD program/thesis at UPEI during his graduating year.
Dennis faced many challenges while working with the complex logistics and environments in Kenya, but he was able to overcome those challenges to do the field research of importance to smallholder farmers in Eastern Africa. He was able to recruit many producers to participate in his projects, and he was dedicated to the outcomes of his research, in which diet supplementation with local leguminous shrubs, such as Calliandra calothyrsis and Sesbania sesban, were introduced. This approach of using agroforestry land management is a great example of local solutions, as he was able to show an increased productivity of the dairy cattle as well as an increase in income for the smallholder dairy farmers. Dennis was able to publish 8 peer-reviewed papers from his PhD studies (5 from his thesis and 3 from a colleague’s thesis) in the Meru region in Kenya.
It is not surprising that after studying at UPEI, the talented and keen Dr. Dennis Makau decided to pursue a Post-Doctoral Fellowship in North America to strengthen his skillset; this time at the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine of the University of Minnesota. He is currently focusing on molecular tools, and One Health concepts that make him an even more rounded veterinary epidemiologist.
From his activities in Minnesota, he submitted and had accepted two abstracts for oral presentations at the prestigious International Symposium for Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics (ISVEE) in Halifax in August 2022 which happens every 3 years. Dennis was also received the prestigious “Wayne Martin ISVEE Emerging Scientist Award” for a person who obtained his/her Ph.D. no more than five years before February 1, 2022, and has shown high potential through achievements so far in veterinary epidemiology and economics. Without a doubt, Dennis’ career path as a young epidemiologist is exceptional and he will be perceived as a role model for other talented young academics from developing countries, applying his QES, Canadian and PhD experiences to the benefit of his university and community. He is now an assistant professor at the new veterinary college at the University of Tennessee.