Born in Austria with family roots in South Tyrol (Trentino–Alto Adige), I work in agronomy and serve as an advisor on agro-industrialization across West Africa. As a university-trained plant biologist specializing in tropical agriculture, my expertise spans conservation agriculture, soil management, and climate-adapted agricultural mechanization in semi-arid environments. Bridging the gap between strategy and the field, I combine hands-on project implementation for private-sector investors with high-level advisory work for governmental and institutional partners. Driven by a deep understanding of local agroecological conditions, I design resilient crop production models that transform local raw materials into scalable value chains.
After several years in The Gambia, I am now primarily based in Senegal. Before moving to West Africa, I spent nearly a decade in Rome and, earlier, almost a decade in Lebanon, where I worked during and after the 2006 war in journalism and humanitarian support.
I serve as Secretary of the Gambia Geographic Explorer Club and sit on the scientific advisory board of the Centre for Relations with Africa of the Italian Geographical Society (CRA-SGI) in Rome. My scientific interests centre on West Africa’s native trees and shrubs, their ecological adaptations, and their phytogeographical distribution.
www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-kukovec-0a229522