The Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Department in Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences has recently seen successful thesis defenses from three graduate students.

Brooke Anderson
Brooke Anderson, a graduate student in agricultural economics and agribusiness, successfully defended her thesis titled "Factors Driving Sugar Cane Production in the Kingdom of eSwatini."

Under the guidance of her adviser, professor Lanier Nalley, Anderson assessed how weather and farm size impact sugar cane production, finding that climate change will negatively impact yields and that increasing agriculture extension support to smallholder growers could improve livelihoods for sugar cane growers in eSwatini, the nation state also known commonly as Swaziland.

Anderson attended the Atlantis double master's degree program, earning a degree in agricultural economics from the U of A and a joint degree in rural development from the University of Ghent. She will be managing grant funds for the Community Initiatives Department within the Missouri Housing Development Commission, with the ultimate goal of focusing on economic development.

Willy Mulimbi Byamungu
Willy Mulimbi Byamungu, a graduate student in agricultural economics and agribusiness, successfully defended his thesis titled "Factors Influencing Adoption of Conservation Agriculture in the Democratic Republic of the Congo."

Under the guidance of his advisers, professors Lanier Nalley, Bruce Dixon, Qiuqiong Huang, and Heather Snell, Mulimbi Byamungu analyzed the effects of sustainable alternatives in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's agricultural sector, finding that several factors such as location, gender, and training drive adoption to varying degrees.

Mulimbi Byamungu, originally from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is an agriculture and development professional who earned his agronomist engineer degree in crop production at the Université Catholique de Bukavu. Byamungu plans to return to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to improve the sector of agriculture and development research and further advance entrepreneurship in Sub-Saharan Africa. 

Noussayma Njeim
Noussayma Njeim, a graduate student in agricultural economics and agribusiness, successfully defended her thesis titled "Socioeconomic Impacts of Infrastructure Investment in eSwatini."

Under the guidance of her adviser, professor Nalley, her thesis focused on the impact of infrastructure investment on the livelihoods of people in the Kingdom of eSwatini.

Njeim, originally from Beirut, Lebanon, attended the U of A through the Atlantis Program. Njeim plans to enhance development through the implementation of efficient and effective projects that tackle the myriad of socioeconomic issues afflicting underprivileged Lebanese.