Dr. Esther Delphine Makamte Pegalepo | Plant Breeding | Women Researcher Award
Africa Rice | Ivory Coast
Dr. Esther Delphine Makamte Pegalepo is a seasoned Cameroonian plant breeder and seed systems expert with over 15 years of experience. She currently serves as a Postdoctoral Fellow and Coordinator of the AfricaRice Breeding Task Force network, contributing to rice genetic improvement across 28 African nations. Passionate about sustainable agriculture, she has led seed system innovations, capacity-building programs, and variety evaluation initiatives. Her mission is to develop pesticide-free, high-yielding rice varieties suited to diverse African agro-ecologies. Dr. Pegalepo combines academic excellence with hands-on expertise in breeding, research coordination, and seed technology to ensure food security in Africa.
Professional Profile
Orcid
Education
Dr. Pegalepo earned her Ph.D. in Phylogenetic Resources and Crop Protection (2020) from the University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin, with a thesis on Piper guineense-based biopesticides for rice protection. She holds two Master’s degrees: one in Seed Industry Seed Technology (2006), and another in Plant Biotechnology (2004), both from the University of Yaoundé I, Cameroon. Her academic journey began with a Bachelor’s in Natural Sciences (2001), following her high school graduation in Mathematics and Natural Sciences in 1997. Her education laid the groundwork for her strong research in plant protection and breeding innovation.
Experience
Dr. Pegalepo currently works at AfricaRice as a PDF Plant Breeder and Coordinator of the Breeding Task Force (BTF), leading capacity-building efforts and rice seed evaluation across 28 African countries. From 2014–2022, she supported breeding operations and seed systems, training women’s associations and partners across West Africa. Earlier, she served at AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center and EICD in Cameroon and Central African Republic, specializing in seed multiplication, vegetable seed systems, and community capacity development. Her responsibilities span varietal development, seed distribution, trial management, and partnership coordination.
Research Interests
Dr. Pegalepo’s research interests focus on plant breeding, seed systems, and ecofriendly pest-resistant rice varieties. Her work emphasizes biotic and abiotic stress resilience, varietal adaptability, and integration of genetic resources from AfricaRice’s genebank. She is involved in the AGGRi2 and B4T projects, which aim to accelerate genetic gain and varietal deployment. Through breeding programs, she supports the delivery of climate-smart, pesticide-free rice cultivars that improve yields, environmental sustainability, and food security across Africa’s diverse agro-climatic zones.
Awards
Dr. Pegalepo was honored as one of the hard-working contributors at AfricaRice in 2014. She has received extensive training in gender-responsive research (GREAT-IRRI, 2019), phytogenetic resource policies (ICARDA, 2017), seed pathology (AVRDC, Tanzania), and data management (AfricaRice). Her dedication to agricultural transformation is further reflected in her membership in the Excellence in Breeding (EIB) team and reviewer role with the European Scientific Journal (ESJ). These recognitions highlight her commitment to excellence in agricultural research and development.
Top Noted Publications
Title: Rice varietal selection using AMMI modeling
Year: 2025
Cited by: 5 articles
Title: Field evaluation for drought and heat adaptability
Year: 2025
Cited by: 4 articles
Title: Infochemical cues for Diopsis apicalis control
Year: 2025
Cited by: 3 articles
Title: Effet de la poudre de Piper guineense
Year: 2019
Title: Review on the use of black and red pepper
Year: 2018
Title: Genetic variation of NERICA and O. sativa
Year: 2018
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