Samuel Kilonzo Mutiga was born on 25th December 1978 to Margaret Muuli and Solomon Mutiga Mugwika in Kathangachini village, old Meru District, Kenya. He has worked as postdoctoral research associate in the plant pathology department of the University of Arkansas, USA; Visiting Scientist at the International Livestock Research Institute, Nairobi, Kenya, and most recently, a consultant scientist at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in Nairobi, Kenya. In early 2025, Samuel Kilonzo Mutiga accepted a faculty position at Maseno University.

Early Life He hails from the small Tharaka tribe of Kenya. He was brought up in a very humble background where his parents were peasant farmers and he would work as a casual in the farms to get income for food and pay for his school fees. To go through the secondary education, he was partly supported by his cousin, Paul Muchee Kairiba and through government bursaries. Upon completion of high school in 1998, he spent sometime in running a small businesses in which he dealt with honey and goats - as these are the most common products in Tharaka. At the time of his secondary school, he did not believe he could travel outside his district for further studies.

Education in Kenya and United States Samuel Kilonzo Mutiga was lucky to get financial support to take a bachelor of Science in Horticulture at Moi University between 2000 and 2004. He developed entrepreneurial skills which saw him start a computer literacy training college at Kimumu Village near the then Chepkoilel Campus where he trained over 300 learners, including university students and staff. His business enabled him to pay for his master of philosophy in plant protection at Moi University between 2004 & 2008. It was during his time as masters student that he learned about the Graduate Record Examination through a former collegemate. Due to his interests to study abroad, he took TOEFL and GRE before apply for admission to study in United States of America. He was lucky to secure a scholarship to take a doctorate at the department of plant pathology, Cornell University, USA where he was mentored by Dr. Rebecca Nelson between 2008 and 2014. Upon graduation, he took a postdoctoral research associate position in Correll Lab in the department of plant pathology.

Family life Samuel Kilonzo Mutiga is married to Sheila Kainyu Mbungu from 2019 todate and the couple is blessed with three children; Martin Muriungi, Neema Gatumi and Baraka Mugambi