Benson Oduor Ameda was born in 1963 in Kenya and works as a veterinary technician in Kenya.
He holds certificates in Animal Health , Veterinary Public Health and Policy Analysis amongst others. He joined the public service in 1987, serving in Various capacities in the areas of disease control, Veterinary public health and surveillance.
Benson is a WOAH Expert on Veterinary Paraprofessionals. He was instrumental in the development of OIE Minimum Competency and Carricular Guidlines for Veterinary Paraprofessionals published in 2018 and 2019 respectively.
He is also the President of Africa Veterinary Technicians Association and therefore providing leadership to over 150,000 Veterinary Paraprofessionals in Africa.
Besides professional service, Benson has remained committed to Service to Humanity resulting into recognition by Her Majesty The Queen Elizabeth II, awarding him The Officer of the Most Vulnerable Order of St. John of Jerusalem ( OStJ ) , and the Head of State of the Republic of Kenya hornouring him with the Order of the Grand Warrior ( OGW ).
Benson is keen in promoting professionalism within the Veterinary domain.
Carina Visser is an Associate Professor in the Department of Animal Science in the Faculty Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria. She specializes in animal breeding and genetics and focuses on the genetic improvement of small-stock, mainly by applying molecular techniques. The genetic improvement of efficient, adaptable animals in Africa will become crucial for food security, and she aims to play a part in overcoming the challenges that will face the human population in terms of climate change. Prof Visser is the current Vice-President of the International Goat Association. She has authored and co-authored 56 peer-reviewed articles in national and international journals, made numerous conference contributions and contributed to a number of chapters on goat breeding and genetics in international textbooks.