Dr Hellen Mbaya
Celebrating women across the globe to prevent deaths from pesticide self-poisoningLeading countrywide initiatives while supporting regulators to reduce pesticide risks
Name
Dr Hellen Mbaya
Job role
Agriculture and Regulatory Advisor, Centre for Pesticide Suicide Prevention.
Location
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Tell us about your role?
I support CPSP activities in the West Africa region and my role entails working with pesticide regulators in low- and middle-income countries. I lead country-specific projects to understand pesticide poisoning and ensure that countries use evidence as a basis for making decision on Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs) to help reduce pesticide suicides and poisoning. Also, using tools such as the FAO Pesticide Registration Toolkit, I support countries in identifying Highly Hazardous Pesticides based on FAO/WHO criteria, assessing their uses, and implementing appropriate risk-mitigation measures.
Why is this work important to you?
This work is important to me because of the impact on a wide range of sectors of the society. Phasing out or banning HHPs ensures that the most vulnerable ecosystems do not suffer from adverse effects of these pesticides. This ranges from farmers who use pesticides to control pests, particularly women and children who are heavily involved in farming activities in low- and middle-income countries; the environment which is polluted as result of leaching of toxic chemicals in the soil and wildlife; and livestock that are poisoned as a result of feeding on crops or vegetation where pesticides have been used.
This profile has been compiled for International Women’s Day 2026, to celebrate the incredible women worldwide who are helping to prevent deaths from pesticide self-poisoning.