Academia, Industry Urged to join forces to tackle practical, local challenges

Panelists: IDCZ, POTRAZ, ZB Financial Holdings, NUST

By Sihlobo Bulala

Calls for stronger collaboration between academia and industry took center stage during the first day of the ZITF Innovators Forum, a side event at the ongoing Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) held at the Bulawayo Agricultural Society Pavilion, yesterday.

Hosted under the theme, “Catalysing Industrial Growth Through Collaborative Innovation,” the platform revealed that there is a disconnect between academia, and industry, a trend that exposes the inefficiencies brought by working in silos and negates the benefits that could be realized when the players connect to tackle day to day local challenges.

Speaking during a session which sought to explore essential tools necessary for growth and innovation in Zimbabwe, Dr Vennan Sibanda, Director of Innovation and Technology Transfer at the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) highlighted that there is a lack of trust between academia and industry as exposed by continuous closure of industry in Bulawayo.

“The institution of higher learning is there to solve problems, whether they’re community problems, social problems, or industrial problems, but industry is shying away from the universities. Our students, when they come up with solutions, they develop abstract solutions from their minds instead of getting real problems from industry because industry is not bringing the problems to the university,” he said, further highlighting that this gap will always remain until industry approaches academics with real problems that the researchers could major on.

Speakers emphasized that problem solving should be a two-way street that should see both academia and industry effectively collaborate to develop practical, locally relevant solutions to pressing social and economic challenges. They encouraged young innovators to be fully emersed in problem solving by being aware of their environment to create sustainable solutions.

“Do not bring in business models of yesteryear to come and solve today’s challenges. They will not work, and you must be a continuous learner even if you’re in industry because if you get stuck in how you have always done things and you don’t embrace change, you don’t embrace innovation, then you’ll have challenges. We have to build our nation together, it’s us who perfectly understand the challenges that are bedevilling us as a people or as a country,” advised Mr Edward Tome, Industrial Development Corporation of Zimbabwe (IDCZ).

During the discussions, the Ministry of Energy and Power Development highlighted that they value research as it could bring about working solutions to energy challenges.

“We encourage research and development where we want to have solutions which are relevant to our time, solutions that can help the country to industrialize to ensure everyone is powered, including rural areas. Our thrust is to ensure that we move with the world in terms of energy transition where we are looking at different forms of energy that can help us to achieve our energy access and ensure reliable energy access to our people,” she said.

As the conversations on the need to enhance collaboration between academia and industry continue, young innovators have been encouraged to explore and leverage emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet connectivity and satellites, Fintech and digital payments, renewable energy technologies, digital skills development, smart agriculture, etc, for solving problems faced in our communities.

The ZITF Innovators Forum is a dynamic platform for young entrepreneurs and innovation enthusiasts to showcase local innovations, spark business connections, and foster knowledge-sharing to drive industry revitalization and economic transformation. The event features a Pitch Competition and Hackathon, offering key opportunities to spotlight entrepreneurial talent and groundbreaking ideas.