Joseph Mutua, a 2019 Michigan State University Cochran Fellow is an agricultural market systems development expert with more than 15 years of progressively responsible experience in the management and implementation of agricultural and Food systems activities within the East African context. He has a history of innovative market facilitation strategies, including the application of replicable and sustainable business models for agriculture and food programs, the development of private and public sector market driven linkages using Market System Development Approach, ultimately improving service delivery and overall business practices in the agriculture sectors in Kenya and Uganda. In his current role, Joseph is a Market System Advisor for USAID Feed the Future Uganda Inclusive Agriculture Markets (FtF-IAM), a US$ 35 Million flagship program developing innovative and inclusive strategies for improving incomes of smallholder farmers in Uganda by supporting agricultural economic growth via private sector linkages in 38 Districts in Uganda. Previously, Joseph served as Director, Market Systems Development for The five year US$ 65 Million USAID-Kenya Crops and Dairy Market Systems (KCDMS) Activity, a Feed the Future program improving incomes of smallholder farmers in Kenya. Joseph has also served as Team Leader in the Mercy Corp’s Resilience And Livelihood Improvement for Youth through Systems (RALIYS) Kenya, a program funded by Swedish International Development Cooperation (Sida) and implemented by a consortium of partners with Mercy Corps as the prime. I have managed numerous programs activities funded by donors such as USAID, the UK Department for International Development (DFID), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and collaborated extensively with the government of Kenya- at both the central and decentralized levels-and with development partners to deliver successful and innovative agriculture development programming.