Dr. Pauline Gitonga is a Dryland Animal Health Consultant with over 15 years of experience supporting livestock health and pastoralist resilience efforts in arid and semi-arid regions of Africa. She currently serves as a Research Affiliate at CEMA and an Affiliate at the Department of Biomedical Sciences at Colorado State University (CSU), where she collaborates on cross-continental One Health initiatives.
Her work integrates participatory research, zoonotic disease surveillance, and livestock value chain development. At CEMA, Dr. Gitonga contributes to applied epidemiological research and innovations in veterinary vaccine delivery. She served as the Associate Director for the USAID Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Veterinary Vaccines Delivery, tackling critical challenges in vaccine development and deployment.
Dr. Gitonga has led or co-led numerous national and international projects, including a five-year DTRA-funded collaboration with CSU focused on building laboratory capacity for zoonotic disease mitigation in Kenya. She is also actively involved in microbial ecology surveillance in live bird markets of non-chicken species (ducks, geese, turkey and guinea fowl), dog clinical trials of an antifertility herbal product, and public awareness around rabies prevention.
Between 2018 and 2019, she worked as a National Consultant for Kenya and Zimbabwe with the Livestock Emergency Guidelines and Standards (LEGS) Project, under a USAID/OFDA-funded operational research initiative. She led field research teams, coordinated stakeholder learning events in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe, and contributed to key policy papers on veterinary voucher schemes and community-based animal health delivery.
A PhD holder in Dryland Resource Management and an MSc in Veterinary Clinical Studies, Dr. Gitonga’s portfolio includes peer-reviewed publications, veterinary manuals, and technical reports covering animal health, disease control, and community engagement. She is passionate about context-sensitive solutions that bridge research, policy, and local knowledge to improve animal and public health outcomes across dryland ecosystems.
Research Interests
Dryland Animal Health | Zoonotic Disease Surveillance | Participatory Epidemiology | One Health | Livestock Vaccinology | Pastoralist Livelihoods | Camel Health and Value Chains | Community-Based Animal Health Systems
Her work integrates participatory research, zoonotic disease surveillance, and livestock value chain development. At CEMA, Dr. Gitonga contributes to applied epidemiological research and innovations in veterinary vaccine delivery. She served as the Associate Director for the USAID Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Veterinary Vaccines Delivery, tackling critical challenges in vaccine development and deployment.
Dr. Gitonga has led or co-led numerous national and international projects, including a five-year DTRA-funded collaboration with CSU focused on building laboratory capacity for zoonotic disease mitigation in Kenya. She is also actively involved in microbial ecology surveillance in live bird markets of non-chicken species (ducks, geese, turkey and guinea fowl), dog clinical trials of an antifertility herbal product, and public awareness around rabies prevention.
Between 2018 and 2019, she worked as a National Consultant for Kenya and Zimbabwe with the Livestock Emergency Guidelines and Standards (LEGS) Project, under a USAID/OFDA-funded operational research initiative. She led field research teams, coordinated stakeholder learning events in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe, and contributed to key policy papers on veterinary voucher schemes and community-based animal health delivery.
A PhD holder in Dryland Resource Management and an MSc in Veterinary Clinical Studies, Dr. Gitonga’s portfolio includes peer-reviewed publications, veterinary manuals, and technical reports covering animal health, disease control, and community engagement. She is passionate about context-sensitive solutions that bridge research, policy, and local knowledge to improve animal and public health outcomes across dryland ecosystems.
Research Interests
Dryland Animal Health | Zoonotic Disease Surveillance | Participatory Epidemiology | One Health | Livestock Vaccinology | Pastoralist Livelihoods | Camel Health and Value Chains | Community-Based Animal Health Systems