ABOUT El Hadji Malick Sylla

Dr. El Hadji Malick Sylla is an Associate Research Scientist at the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC), specializing in sustainable food systems, climate and environmental health, agricultural economics, and spatial analysis in West and Central Africa. His work sits at the intersection of climate change, health, agriculture, and social inequality, with a strong focus on evidence generation to support policy and improve population well-being.

Dr. Sylla leads and contributes to several high-impact research initiatives at APHRC, including the NuMERAL-USAID project on nutrition monitoring and evaluation across six West African countries (Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, and Ghana), and the project on restoring degraded African drylands and implications for human health. He also serves as a scientific co-lead on work exploring climate and health financing for resilient health systems in Senegal.

As APHRC’s focal point for Countdown to 2030, he works closely with national institutions to strengthen analytics, policy engagement, and capacity building. Dr. Sylla holds a PhD in Geography and Agricultural Economics from Gaston Berger University (Senegal), where he won the 2024 Best Thesis Award in Senegal. He is also an alumnus of the IFAD-IITA CARE Program, selected among only 30 young African researchers.