Brian Mandebvu conducting a food security assessment in the field for FAO Brian Mandebvu presenting at the Southern Africa Dialogue Platform on Anticipatory Humanitarian Action
Johannesburg, South Africa · Est. June 2025

Senior advisory in food security and climate resilience.

BM Nova Africa supports governments, UN agencies, and climate-finance institutions across Africa with rigorous food-security assessment, damage-and-loss analytics, and resilience-programme design.

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0yrs
Senior food security & disaster assessment experience
WFPFAOSADCCARE
0+
Countries with direct, recent operational presence
0k
Households surveyed in Zimbabwe urban baseline alone
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SADC member states coordinated as M&E Advisor
What we do

Three connected services, one methodological foundation.

BM Nova Africa specialises in three areas, and only these three. The discipline of narrow focus is part of the value proposition.

Field-level food security and vulnerability assessment
01
Food Security & Vulnerability Assessment
End-to-end design and delivery of household and population-level food security and vulnerability analysis. IPC-aligned, CARI-aligned, survey-to-report.
Full service details
Damage and loss data analysis with a team of associates
02
Disaster Damage & Loss Assessment
Quantifying agricultural damages and losses after climate events using PDNA-aligned methodology across crops, livestock, fisheries, and forestry.
Full service details
Presenting a climate resilience programme framework for FAO
03
Climate Resilience Programme Development
Theory-of-change design, results frameworks, M&E systems, and proposal development for GCF, AF, FRLD, GEF, and bilateral climate-finance windows.
Full service details
Brian Mandebvu leading a technical training session
Johannesburg · RSA
2025
Year founded
Leadership

Led by Brian Mandebvu

BM Nova Africa is the advisory practice of Brian Mandebvu — nineteen years of senior experience in food security, vulnerability analysis, and disaster damage-and-loss assessment across Africa and Asia.

He has held senior roles with WFP (Sierra Leone, Bangladesh, Somalia, Libya, Zimbabwe), CARE International, and the SADC Secretariat's RVAA Programme. Currently serving as Regional Advisor at the FAO Regional Office for Southern Africa.

Brian Mandebvu
Brian Mandebvu
MSc Disaster Management · BSc Hons Agricultural Economics · Jàmbá peer-reviewed author
Recent work

Selected engagement

SADC RVAA Programme · 2013–2015
SADC Regional Vulnerability Assessment and Analysis Programme — M&E Advisor, ten member states
As M&E Advisor to the SADC RVAA Programme Management Unit, Brian designed and operationalised the knowledge management and M&E framework linking the SADC logframe to national Vulnerability Assessment Committees in ten member states — providing technical assistance on early warning, food-security monitoring, GIS-based livelihood mapping, and policy uptake of vulnerability evidence.
10
Member States
2
Years duration
SADC
Contracting body
Considering an engagement?

Ready to work together?

BM Nova Africa takes a small number of engagements at any time and prefers an early conversation about scope before formal procurement.

Brian Mandebvu presenting at a Southern Africa dialogue platform
Our story

About BM Nova Africa

The senior advisory practice of Brian Mandebvu — registered in South Africa in June 2025, based in Johannesburg. Nineteen years of food-security, vulnerability analysis, and damage-and-loss expertise, available to governments, multilateral agencies, and climate-finance institutions working across Africa.

Brian Mandebvu on assignment for FAO
Brian MandebvuPrincipal · BM Nova Africa · Johannesburg
The principal

Brian Mandebvu

Brian Mandebvu is a monitoring, evaluation, and food-security specialist with nineteen years of experience across thirteen African and Asian countries. His career has spanned senior assessment, monitoring, and evaluation roles with the World Food Programme (Sierra Leone, Bangladesh, Somalia, Libya, Zimbabwe), CARE International (Zimbabwe and Afghanistan), the SADC Secretariat's Regional Vulnerability Assessment and Analysis Programme (Botswana), Africare, Action Contre la Faim, World Vision, and Coffey International.

He currently serves as Regional Advisor — Food Security and Agricultural Livelihoods Assessments at the FAO Regional Office for Southern Africa. BM Nova Africa engagements are undertaken in his personal capacity, with prior written authorisation from the FAO Ethics Office.

  • MSc in Disaster Management — National University of Science and Technology, Zimbabwe (2019)
  • BSc Honours in Agricultural Economics — University of Zimbabwe (2006)
  • Certificate in Impact Assessment, M&E — Wageningen University, Netherlands (2012)
  • Member, Zimbabwe Evaluation Society
  • Co-author, Jàmbá: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies (2019)
Our model

How the firm works

BM Nova Africa is principal-led. Brian Mandebvu personally leads every engagement. For technical specialisms beyond the principal's expertise, the firm draws on a curated network of senior associates across agricultural economics, GIS and spatial analysis, climate finance, M&E systems design, and field data collection.

Associates are mobilised on an engagement-specific basis. The firm does not maintain salaried staff beyond the principal.

The person you meet at the proposal stage is the person who delivers the work. This is a deliberate choice, not a limitation.
Geographic coverage

Where we work

Team collaborating on assessment work across Southern Africa

Primary focus: Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia, Malawi, Botswana, Namibia, Angola, Lesotho, Eswatini, Madagascar, Tanzania. Engagements elsewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa accepted selectively.

Legal

Firm registration

Legal nameBM Nova Africa (Pty) Ltd
RegistrationCompanies and Intellectual Property Commission of South Africa, 9 June 2025
Reg. number2025/460482/07
Registered address1 Eglin Road, Sunninghill, Johannesburg 2157, South Africa
Tax referenceSouth African Revenue Service · 9367299238
DirectorBrian Mandebvu (sole director and principal)
Financial year-end31 December
Ethics

FAO Ethics disclosure

The principal currently serves as Regional Advisor at the FAO Regional Office for Southern Africa. BM Nova Africa was registered with the FAO Ethics Office prior to commencement of any consultancy work, and operates within the scope of written authorisation. The firm does not engage on assignments within the principal's FAO duties, does not bid for FAO contracts, and does not present FAO-commissioned work as BM Nova deliverables.

Presenting a programme framework for FAO
Services

What we do

Three connected services sharing a single methodological foundation — rigorous evidence collection and analysis — serving a common purpose: helping clients make defensible decisions about climate-affected and food-insecure populations in Africa.

01
Food security and vulnerability assessment
End-to-end design and delivery of household, community, and population-level food security and vulnerability analysis.
What it is
From sampling design and questionnaire development through enumerator training, digital data collection, IPC-aligned and CARI-aligned analysis, and final policy-facing reporting.
Who it is for
National Vulnerability Assessment Committees, ministries of agriculture, UN agencies, NGOs delivering food-security programming, DFIs evaluating food-system risk.
What you get
Survey instruments, trained enumerator teams, clean datasets with documentation, analysis written for the decision at hand, and visualisation outputs for the audience.
Methods
CARIIPCHEAKAPRIMAFSOMCFSVAmVAM
02
Disaster damage and loss assessment
Quantifying agricultural sector damages and losses following climate-related and other disaster events, using PDNA-aligned methodology.
What it is
Coverage spans crops, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture, and forestry. Uses the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment framework published jointly by the EU, World Bank, and United Nations.
Who it is for
National disaster management authorities, ministries of agriculture, climate-finance institutions, and UN agencies coordinating post-disaster response.
What you get
Damage and loss computation by sub-sector, baseline reconstruction, value-chain analysis, recovery needs estimation, and institutional capacity-building support.
Methods
PDNAFAO D&L templatesNASA HarvestASISGIEWS
03
Climate resilience programme and proposal development
Turning evidence into fundable programmes for GCF, AF, FRLD, GEF, and bilateral climate-finance windows.
What it is
Theory-of-change design, results frameworks, M&E and MEAL systems, and full proposal development for the Green Climate Fund, Adaptation Fund, Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, GEF, and bilateral funds.
Who it is for
Governments, multilateral implementing entities, UN agencies, and NGOs co-bidding on climate and resilience calls.
What you get
Concept notes, full proposals, results frameworks, M&E systems, stakeholder mapping, co-financing structures, and budget narratives mapped to donor scoring criteria.
Methods
GCF logframeTheory of ChangeRBMMEALGEFAF
Scope

What we do not do

Saying yes to everything is the cheapest way for a small firm to look junior.

  • We do not deliver outside food security, climate resilience, and damage-and-loss assessment.
  • We do not bid for FAO contracts. The principal's FAO role excludes them.
  • We do not write proposals for organisations whose theory of change we do not believe in.
  • We do not publish day rates. Rates are negotiated per engagement against scope and seniority.
Reviewing assessment data with associates
Our methodology

How we work

Three things distinguish BM Nova Africa: methodological discipline, senior attention, and honest scoping. None are dramatic. All matter for the kind of clients the firm serves.

Six principles

Our working principles

✦
Hover or tap a principle
to read more
01Methodological discipline
02Senior attention
03Honest scoping
04Quality assurance
05Ethics and conduct
06Working language
01
Methodological discipline
The firm uses published, peer-reviewed methods. Where the principal innovates on a method, the innovation is documented and made available to clients in writing. Where two methods would produce different answers, the choice is made transparently before fieldwork begins.
Peer-reviewed methods, documented innovation
02
Senior attention
The principal is on every engagement and writes, or substantively edits, every deliverable. Associates have five years of relevant experience minimum. The person you meet at the proposal stage is the person who delivers the work.
No hidden delivery team
03
Honest scoping
Before a contract is signed, the firm tells the client what the engagement will and will not produce. If the data expected will not support the analysis requested, the firm says so in writing. This sometimes loses contracts. It does not lose the right contracts.
Says so before fieldwork begins
04
Quality assurance
Every deliverable is internally reviewed before release. For complex work, an external peer reviewer reads it before it goes out. Datasets are version-controlled and accompanied by codebooks and analysis syntax so clients can re-run analysis after handover.
Internal + external peer review
05
Ethics and conduct
Field protocols follow IASC Operational Guidelines and standard humanitarian principles. Data collected remains the client's data. POPIA compliance is standard; GDPR alignment added for EU clients. Conflicts of interest are declared in writing at the proposal stage.
IASC · POPIA · GDPR-aligned
06
Working language
Engagements are delivered in English. The firm does not claim French or Portuguese delivery capability. Where required, the firm partners with a native-speaker associate and discloses this in the proposal.
English delivery, disclosed partnerships
Tools & platforms

Technical toolkit

Survey & data collection
ODK CollectKoBoCollectXLSFormSurveyCTO
Statistical analysis
StataSPSSRSASNVivo
Spatial analysis
ArcGISQGISGoogle Earth EngineMODISSentinel
Visualisation
Power BITableauR ShinyExcel
Direct experience
Southern Africa & beyond
Zimbabwe · South Africa · Mozambique · Zambia · Malawi · Botswana · Namibia · Angola · Lesotho · Eswatini · Madagascar · Tanzania
Through prior assignments
Additional experience
Sierra Leone · Bangladesh · Somalia · Libya · Iraq · Afghanistan
Engagements elsewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa accepted selectively, where prior experience or a partner-association warrants it.
Leading a technical training session
Track record

Selected engagements

BM Nova Africa was incorporated in June 2025. The engagements below were personally led by the principal during prior senior roles. Each names the contracting organisation honestly.

Engagement 01
SADC RVAA — Regional M&E Advisor
SADC Secretariat, Regional Vulnerability Assessment and Analysis Programme
2013–2015
Role
Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor
Coverage
10 SADC member states
Period
October 2013 – March 2015
As M&E Advisor to the SADC RVAA Programme Management Unit, the principal designed and operationalised the knowledge management and M&E framework linking the SADC logframe to national Vulnerability Assessment Committees in ten member states. The role involved direct technical assistance on early-warning instruments, food-security monitoring, GIS-based livelihood mapping, and policy uptake of vulnerability evidence.
Key contributions
Harmonised reporting across ten countries; NVAC training in spatial data management and HEA-based livelihood typologies; integration of climate-change adaptation evidence into national vulnerability analysis.
Engagement 02
Sierra Leone Comprehensive Food Security and Vulnerability Assessment
World Food Programme, Sierra Leone
2021
Role
Head of VAM and M&E
Coverage
National (Sierra Leone)
Period
March 2021 – May 2022
Led the 2021 Comprehensive Food Security and Vulnerability Assessment — a national household survey providing trend analysis against the prior 2010 and 2015 rounds and forming the evidence base for targeting national food and nutrition social-protection programmes. In parallel, designed and operationalised a national Food Security Monitoring System producing semi-annual snapshots at national and district level.
Engagement 03
Cox's Bazar Refugee-influx Emergency Vulnerability Assessment, Round 6
World Food Programme, Bangladesh
2022
Role
VAM Officer
Coverage
Ukhiya and Teknaf sub-districts + host community
Period
June – December 2022
Led the sixth round of the joint REVA assessment monitoring food-security and vulnerability levels of the Rohingya refugee population and adjacent host community. The 2022 round integrated WFP's REVA design, FAO's RIMA Round 2, and WFP's FSOM — one survey instrument producing three analytically distinct outputs.
Engagement 04
Zimbabwe Urban Social Assistance Programme — Baseline (36,509 households)
World Food Programme, Zimbabwe / Regional Bureau Johannesburg
2019–2021
Role
Lead Data Analyst → Regional Data Analyst (RBJ)
Coverage
Seven urban domains, Zimbabwe
Households
36,509
Led design and analysis of the Zimbabwe Urban Social Assistance Programme baseline — one of the largest urban household-vulnerability assessments conducted in Southern Africa. Designed the targeting matrix, programmed the structured questionnaire in XLSForm, deployed across 500 enumerator devices, and led cleaning and analysis of 36,509 interviewed households across seven urban domains.
Engagement 05 · Peer-reviewed publication
Monitoring droughts in Eswatini: spatiotemporal variability using Standard Precipitation Index
Jàmbá: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies
2019
Co-authors
Mlenga, D.H. · Jordaan, A.J. · Mandebvu, B.
Published
September 2019
Spatiotemporal variability analysis of drought conditions in Eswatini using the Standard Precipitation Index, contributing to the country's national drought-monitoring evidence base. Applied SPI computation across multiple time scales to identify seasonal and inter-annual drought signatures with implications for early-warning system design.

References on request. Named professional references covering the engagements above are available on request as part of any procurement process.

Reviewing field assessment notes
Publications

Insights

Writing — peer-reviewed publications, conference contributions, and methodological notes — produced by the principal. This page grows when there is something worth saying.

Peer-reviewed publications
Jàmbá: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies
Monitoring droughts in Eswatini: A spatiotemporal variability analysis using the Standard Precipitation Index
Mlenga, D.H., Jordaan, A.J. & Mandebvu, B. (2019)
Application of the Standard Precipitation Index to drought monitoring in Eswatini. The analysis applied SPI computation across multiple time scales to identify seasonal and inter-annual drought signatures with implications for early-warning system design and national drought preparedness.
Methodological notes

Forthcoming short-form notes on practical methodological questions from active practice.

Remote-sensing crop assessment in smallholder systems

A note on the practical limits of remote-sensing-based crop assessment in smallholder systems — where satellite data is reliable, where it fails, and how to design ground-truth sampling accordingly.

PDNA Agriculture — the gap between methodology and adoption

A note on the structural gap between the PDNA Agriculture published methodology and actual country-level adoption, with practical recommendations for procurement officers and technical advisors.

Measuring household livelihood resilience

A note on the structural problems with how livelihood resilience is measured at household level — and what a more defensible measurement framework would look like.

Brian Mandebvu engaging with workshop participants
Reach out

Get in touch

BM Nova Africa takes a small number of engagements at any one time. Initial enquiries are welcome — an early conversation about scope, before any formal procurement, is preferred to a cold proposal.

Direct contact
Principalbrian@bmnovaafrica.com
Generalinfo@bmnovaafrica.com
 +27 73 965 0605 linkedin.com/in/mandebvub
Registered office
BM Nova Africa (Pty) Ltd
1 Eglin Road, Sunninghill
Johannesburg 2157, South Africa
Initial enquiries acknowledged within two working days (SAST). Substantive response within five working days.
What to include
  • The decision the engagement needs to support
  • The country or countries involved
  • Expected timeline, including non-negotiable milestones
  • Whether the engagement is sole-source, competitive, or framework

Enquiry form

For formal procurement processes or initial conversations. All fields are confidential.

Acknowledged within two working days · Full response within five working days