Biography
Dr. Eng. Kelvin Lungu Agabu is a Lecturer in the School of Engineering at the University of Zambia. A registered Professional Engineer with the Engineering Institution of Zambia (EIZ), he holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Zambia, a Master of Engineering in Transportation Engineering from Stellenbosch University, and a PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a specialization in Construction Management from the University of Zambia.
His academic background encompasses core contributions across policy, aviation, road safety, transportation, sustainable development, and climate change. His biggest academic achievement to date is serving as a key contributor to the BRIDGE HIV project awarded the prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) European Union 2026 Grant, with the main applicant being Erasmus MC in the Netherlands, during his tenure as a visiting researcher, with the award amounting to EUR 1.7 million.
Dr. Lungu's active research portfolio spans sustainable construction materials, bio-mediated soil improvement (such as MICP), waste plastic upcycling for road infrastructure, and multi-criteria decision-making models for pavement maintenance. He has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters in international journals, contributing significantly to resilient infrastructure development in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Publications
List of Key Publications
Lungu, K., Kaliba, C., Phesa, M., & Mashwama, N. (2026). Implementing climate-resilient embankment infrastructure in wetland ecosystems: A case study of Zambia. Presented at ICTA 2026, Namibia, 7–9 July 2026.
Mudenda, S. H., Banda, I. N., Tembo, J. M., Kaliba, C., & Lungu, K. A. (2025). A grounded theory approach to sanitation-flood disaster risk reduction in peri-urban areas: A case of Zambia. Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, 15(11), 977–992. https://doi.org/10.2166/washdev.2025.169
Shikabonga, J., Lungu, K. A., Mwaba, D., Mubita, C., Mulenga, M. N., & Mwanaumo, E. (2025). Sustainable construction: Optimization of microbial soil stabilization for enhanced construction materials. International Journal of Engineering and Management Research, 15(1), 36–52. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14874393
Shikabonga, J., Lungu, K. A., Mulenga, M., & Kaliba, C. (2025). Microbial-induced calcium carbonate precipitation in road and building construction: A systematic review of a novel approach to aggregate formation. International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research, 7(2). https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2025.v07i02.42864
Katotobwe, C., Kaliba, C., & Lungu Agabu, K. (2024). Enhanced local contractor participation: Case of Zambia water supply and sanitation sub-sector. International Journal of Engineering and Management Research, 14(1), 246–260. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10819950
Lungu Agabu, K., Kaliba, C., & Mwanaumo, E. M. (2023). Sustainable prioritization of public asphalt paved road maintenance. International Journal of Engineering and Management Research, 13(6), 17–31. https://doi.org/10.31033/ijemr.13.6.3
Lungu Agabu, K., Kaliba, C., & Mwanaumo, E. M. (2023). Systematic review: Prioritization models for asphalt road maintenance. In Building Smart, Resilient and Sustainable Infrastructure in Developing Countries (pp. 225–234). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003325321-24
Lungu Agabu, K., Kaliba, C., Mwanaumo, E. M., & Mpundu, P. (2023). Score card utility matrix for prioritization of asphalt paved road maintenance projects. In Proceedings of the 4th African International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Operations Management, Lusaka, Zambia, 4–6 April 2023. https://doi.org/10.46254/AF04.20230099
Mudenda, S. H. M., Banda, I. N., Tembo, J. M., & Lungu Agabu, K. (2022). Government institutional emergent issues and gaps in disaster management mechanisms for WASH: A case study of Zambia’s Kanyama peri-urban area. Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, 12(7), 563–574. https://doi.org/10.2166/washdev.2022.079
Mudenda, S. H. M., Banda, I. N., Tembo, J. M., & Lungu, K. A. (2022). Community challenges and needs in sanitation, related to flooding disasters in peri-urban areas: Case of Kanyama–Zambia. International Journal of Science and Research, 11(5), 1776–1782. https. https://doi.org/10.21275/SR22524191250
Mudenda, S. H. M., Banda, I. N., Tembo, J. M., & Lungu Agabu, K. (2022). Disaster management adaptation for peri-urban areas: A case of Zambia.
Mwanaumo, E. M., & Lungu Agabu, K. (2021). Motorist understanding of pavement centre lines and their effect on driving behaviour. International Journal of Engineering and Management Research, 11(1), 110–122. https://doi.org/10.31033/ijemr.11.1.16
Research Interest
Core Research Interests
Construction management, project management, geospatial and data analytics, occupational health and safety, procurement management, civil and transportation engineering, construction materials, sustainable development.
Projects and Grants
Active Research Projects and Grants (Full Project Titles)
• BRIDGE HIV under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) European Union 2026 Grant
• Research Project: Disbursement Latency and Project Performance in Zambian Donor-Funded Construction
• Research Project: A Smart Mobility Framework for Road Safety – Integrating CCTV and Edge Analytics in Zambia
• Research Project: A Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) and Monte Carlo Simulation Framework for Optimizing Contractor Selection and Cost-Time Risk in Zambian Civil Engineering Procurement
• Research Project: Evaluating the Efficacy of Digital Transformation and Regulatory Compliance in Zambian Procurement: An Assessment of the Electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) System and the Public Procurement Act No. 8 of 2020
• Research Project: Determinants of Growth of the Zambian Construction Industry: An Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Bounds Testing Approach
• Research Project: Local Content Preferences and Supply Chain Inclusion: An Empirical Analysis of Statutory Instrument No. 45 of 2025 and Citizen Empowerment in Zambian Public Procurement
• Research Project: A Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Spatial Risk Assessment Framework for Optimizing Construction Site Safety and Traffic Management on Urban Road Expansion Projects in Zambia
• Research Project: A Stochastic Life-Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) and Bill of Quantities Optimization Framework for Material Substitution in Zambian Road Infrastructure Procurement