Jessica Kampanje-Phiri (PhD) is a social anthropologist specialized in understanding the socio-cultural dimension of food systems in Malawi and beyond. Her specific areas of academic and research expertise include: food and nutrition policy analysis, the natural, social, political, institutional, economic, cultural, and technological aspects of food, poverty and livelihood security, power and gender relations, social-cultural inequalities, humanitarian interventions and development assistance.

Kampanje-Phiri is a Lecturer of Social Work and the former Deputy Head for the department of Human Ecology at the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR). In CICI-ESA, Kampanje-Phiri is one of the researchers for Malawi and will bring her above stated expertise to understanding complexities and dynamics of human interactions, gender and policy issues in the context of cow-pea value chain in order to inform the priority setting and uptake phases of this research project.