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Sharon Buwerimwe, Chronicle Reporter
GOVERNMENT has urged researchers to produce innovations that address real problems in communities in the country.
Speaking at the Bulawayo Polytechnic 5th Research conference at a city Hotel, The Permanent Secretary for Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development, Professor Fanuel Tagwira, said research projects that do not meet the demands of social and economic problems in societies should be stopped.
“Elitist research work based purely on exotic educational domains devoid of local realities should be relegated to the back benches in our TVET (Technical Vocational Education and Transition) institutions as a whole,” he said.
Prof Tagwira said researchers should develop a mindset which is knowledge based that provides solutions to problems because society looks up to them.
“Society looks up to the intelligentsia for solutions to everyday challenges. You are the “giants” in our society”, he said.
Prof Tagwira said Polytechnics should partner with local industries to enhance their research and knowledge.
“Polytechnics must take the first steps to collaborate with local industry and businesses to incubate fledgling patentable ideas for eventual commercialisation and business enterprise,” he said.
Prof Tagwira urged Polytechnics to partner local universities that already have Innovation Hubs and Industrial Parks and use the universities’ facilities until such time that they have their own.
He said the ministry is planning to produce a solar map of Zimbabwe through the geospatial project to help those who want to invest in solar technology and agriculture.
“Currently the Ministry is championing and supporting a number of projects that focus on exploiting our competitive advantages which are Geospatial and earth observation project, livestock restoration project and tissue culture project”, Prof Tagwira said.
He said researchers are benefiting more from innovations than salaries.
“In many overseas institutions, researchers/lecturers are making more money from innovations than salaries. They are putting up buildings at their Institutions. In many research intensive institutions today, they are moving away from selling intellectual property (IP) and choosing to focus on selling start-up industries coming out of the intellectual property”, said Prof Tagwira.
He said Government is earmarking one percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to go to research.
“Government has made positive pronouncements about setting aside one percent of GDP to go to research. That alone is very positive. We need to create and strengthen Private sector-College linkages,” Prof Tagwira said.
Bulawayo Polytechnic Principal Mr Gilbert Mzenzi Mabasa said the institution would continue to invest in research.
“We continue to invest in research as this is fundamentally the only effective means through which we can resuscitate, innovate, industrialise and stabilise our economy”, said Mr Mabasa.
— @sharonbuwe.
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