Biography

Lailat is an agronomist by training, with over half a decade’s worth of experience working with small, medium and large-scale farmers in Mozambique. As a technical assistant in an agricultural inputs distributor, she is enabling farmers to enhance their productivity while promoting the correct use and management of pesticides, for the safety of the environment and people. To her, getting to assist and influence farmers on their decisions regarding what solutions to apply, how frequently and how much is a privilege. Her efforts have led to several hundreds of farmers creating more employment opportunities for youth, thereby contributing to the social strength and economic capacity of Mozambique.

Research focus

As a researcher and now MSc student on the Honeyguide Research Project, Lailat is testing whether bee pollination services to small-scale crops are resilient to the harvesting of wild bees’ nests in cooperation with honeyguides. She is doing so using field experiments in the Niassa Special Reserve in Mozambique, in collaboration with small-scale farmers and honey-hunters from the Mbamba village community.