Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) and the Innoversity project are working together to help students who have innovative business ideas, particularly in the agri-food sector, realize their dreams and aspirations.
This became apparent during a week-long capacity-building workshop designed to prepare SUA academic staff to serve as coaches and mentors to students on their entrepreneurial journey.
Speaking about the project, Ms. Trufina Matekele, who is also the project manager, explained that the Innoversity project is funded by the French embassy, and in Tanzania, they aim to build the capacity of three universities: Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), the University of Iringa and the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology.
The project support students, lecturers, researchers, and management to integrate innovation and entrepreneurial approaches in their works to address the skills gap and create employment opportunities for youths.
She emphasized that SUA offers many programmes in agriculture, which means that there are numerous entrepreneurial opportunities, so this project provides a chance for students both undergraduate and postgraduate with innovative business ideas to receive the help they need to make their dreams come true.
"Many students have already expressed interest in receiving help from the project, and we will make sure their ideas are successfully implemented," underscored Ms. Matekele
For her part, the Coordinator of Technology Transfer from SUA, Dr. Doreen Ndossi, who also participated in the training, said the knowledge they gained will enable them to find effective methods to help students' innovative ideas materialize.
The training is important and timely, she said, because it is in line with the goals of the Innovation Hub established at SUA in recent years, known as "SUA Innovation Hub," which, among other things, helps students fulfill their dreams through creativity and innovation ideas.
The training was held for five days from August 29 to September 2, 2022. The event involved not only training for academic staff, but also students from participating institutions who learned more about the project's purpose and opportunities.
More About the Project
The Innoversity project is a two-year project funded by the France Embassy in Tanzania and implemented by Sahara Ventures a science and Technology firm whose mission is to build a stable innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship ecosystem in Africa through consultancy and investment.
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