PROF. WANJA MWAURA

Prof. Wanja Mwaura-Tenambergen is an Associate Professor of Health Systems Management. Her main interest is in health financing under the aspect of improved access to primary care health services especially in rural areas of low- and middle-income countries.

Prof. Wanja has over 15 years of experience in teaching and research in higher education. She has spear headed the development of training curricula for undergraduate, masters and PhD studies in health systems management in Kenya. She has been the country coordinator for the collaborative projects between Kenya Methodist University (Kenya), Neu Ulm University of Applied Sciences (Germany), University of Western Cape (South Africa), and Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (Tanzania), to develop multiple country training programs in health information management and health data analytics with the support from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation.

She has great passion to improve learning and teaching in higher education. Her vision is to provide relevant inputs to the advancement of higher education through transformational teaching methods. She is the current Chairperson of the Association of Faculty Enrichment in Learning and Teaching (AFELT). She believes in creating partnerships with organizations and the community to advance quality in learning, teaching and research. She believes that teaching and learning has be closely linked to the problems in the community and their solutions. She was facilitator in the project of “Transforming Employability for Social Change in East Africa (TESCEA)” implemented by AFELT and INASP (UK) in collaboration with four universities in Uganda and Tanzania.

She serves as the Director of Research, Innovation and Extension in KeMU. She guarantees the quality of research in the university for the students and faculty. She has been involved in numerous research projects and is currently a co-principal investigator in a multidisciplinary research “Research and Development of Heat-Stabilized Rice Bran for Diarrhea Prevention” funded by the National Research Fund. She previously worked as the Director of University Advancement and Marketing in KeMU. She helped to increase the visibility of the university and improve customer experience. Wanja serves in the government board of the Directorate of Quality Assurance and Performance in KeMU.

She holds a PhD and Master in Public Health (health financing option) both from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok Thailand, MSc. in Organizational Development from the United States International University, Kenya and a Bachelor of Arts from Kenyatta University.