He also worked with other ornithologists and collectors in east Africa including Melvin Traylor, Arthur Loveridge, Charles Sibley, and Michael Irwin.
Makawa was famed for his observational skills, ability to identify novel species, mimic bird calls, collect, and prepare specimens.
Makawa was born in Mozambique and belonged to the ethnic group variously known as Lomwe, Nguru, or Makua who traditionally hunted for food.
After Benson left in 1962, Makawa worked in the Zambian Game department and accompanied ornithological visitors to the Lochinvar National Park.
[6] In 1958 Benson led an expedition in the Indian Ocean and along with Makawa they discovered a new species of warbler on the Comoros, Nesillas mariae.
Makawa collected a specimen of a tinkerbird that was new to him and when it failed to match any known species, it was formally described in 1965 by Benson and Irwin as Pogoniulus makawai.
The single specimen with unique plumage has been examined in more recent times and comparison of its DNA sequences with related species suggests that it may represent a distinct population (or subspecies) of Pogoniulus bilineatus.