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Patricia Kitsao-Wekulo

Associate Research Scientist, African Population and Health Research Center

Patricia obtained a PhD in Psychology from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, and Master’s (M.Ed. – Home Economics) and Bachelor’s Degrees (B.Ed. – Home Economics) from Kenyatta University, Kenya. While engaged as a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Aga Khan University’s Institute for Human Development (AKU/IHD), she was the Lead Research Consultant on a project which sought to provide for a living model of best practice in Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres, develop understanding of factors that contribute to resilience in children growing up in adversity, and provide the framework for a longitudinal study of the influences of ECD programmes on human capital formation.

As a child development researcher, Patricia is interested in the investigation of the relationship between antecedent context characteristics and child developmental outcomes. This mainly concerns the influence of factors such as the child’s immediate environment on cognition, motor development, language and psychosocial behavior. Such research has important implications for the development of sustainable and efficacious interventions.

Patricia works in the Early Childhood Development (ECD) Program within the Maternal and Child Wellbeing Unit and her work revolves around the exploration of childcare models which can be scaled with quality within disadvantaged context, as well as potential childcare policy priorities.

Experience

  • –present
    Post-Doctoral Research Scientist, African Population and Health Research Center