Online Reporter
Patrick Chitumba [email protected]
THE time has come for Zimbabwe to transform Artificial Intelligence (AI) from a university research project into a powerful engine of industrialisation, with universities, Government and the private sector working together to turn innovations into solutions that create jobs, cut production costs and improve public services, a Cabinet Minister has said.
Speaking at the Midlands State University (MSU) Research, Innovation and Industrialisation Expo recently, Information Communication Technology (ICT), Postal and Courier Services Minister
Tatenda Mavetera emphasised the need for the country to harness promising AI opportunities by moving innovations beyond laboratories into the economy.
She told academics, Government officials and research and innovation students that AI research must be subjected to real-world testing and translated into affordable technologies capable of delivering measurable economic and social benefits.
The Expo ran under the theme: “From Knowledge to Impact: Advancing Research, Innovation and Industrialisation for Sustainable and Inclusive Development,” while Minister Mavetera’s
presentation, “From AI to Industrial Impact: Reimagining University–Government–Industry
Partnerships for Africa’s Innovation Future,” highlighted that AI should not be treated as an end in itself, but as a tool for solving real economic and social problems.
“Artificial Intelligence will contribute to industrialisation when we organise our institutions to turn research into reliable solutions that people can afford, businesses can adopt and public services can sustain,” she said.
Minister Mavetera said Zimbabwe’s AI ambitions were inseparable from President Mnangagwa’s Vision 2030 agenda of creating a prosperous, modernised and upper-middle-income society.
She referred to the launch of the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2026–2030 by President Mnangagwa in March this year, which provides a national framework for harnessing opportunities presented by the technology, but said institutions now needed to translate the strategy into practical projects that produce measurable results.
“Our responsibility now is to give that direction practical expression in research institutions, enterprises and communities,” she said.
Minister Mavetera said the strategy’s focus on skills, infrastructure, responsible adoption and research should guide universities, industry and Government in identifying specific problems, matching them with capable partners and measuring outcomes.
She said AI could assist researchers in identifying patterns, analysing images, forecasting demand and selecting experiments, while industries could use the technology to detect equipment faults early, improve product quality and reduce the use of energy and raw materials.
“An algorithm that performs well on a selected dataset is an encouraging research result.
Its industrial value still has to be established under real operating conditions, with imperfect data, maintenance requirements and users who must trust its recommendations,” she said.
Minister Mavetera said the real test was whether technology reduced costs, improved production, enhanced public services or delivered tangible benefits to citizens.
She cited Rwanda’s use of drones to deliver blood products to health facilities as an example of how technology could be built around a clearly defined service problem, while cautioning that reported improvements should not be attributed to AI alone.
She challenged Zimbabwean universities to apply the same approach to local challewnges, including defects in manufactured components, equipment maintenance in mineral processing and losses across the agricultural value chains.
On waste management, Minister Mavetera said local authorities could test whether better information improved collection reliability wwhile biomedical AI would require experts to assess accuracy, traceability and the handling of sensitive information.
“Industry and public institutions should bring problems with named owners, measurable costs, and a genuine willingness to test solutions,” she said.
Minister Mavetera urged partners at the Expo to identify a limited portfolio of joint projects focusing on areas such as agricultural productivity, industrial maintenance and municipal services.
Each project, she said, should have clearly defined problems, evidence of success, responsibilities for each partner and conditions under which it should be expanded or discontinued.
“Government could support local innovators through public procurement processes that clearly define problems to be solved, allow fair competition and demand evidence of performance,” the Minister said.
“The country’s digital growth provides opportunities for university–industry research, particularly in the use of sensors and connected equipment to improve industrial maintenance, energy management and product traceability.”
Minister Mavetera said innovators should design technologies for Zimbabwe’s realities, including uneven connectivity, the cost of devices and data, different languages and varying levels of digital confidence.
She challenged MSU and its partners to use the Expo as a launchpad for concrete projects, proposing that within 90 days, participating teams identify priority problems, secure industry or public-service partners, assess data readiness and prepare proposals with measurable outcomes.
“Zimbabwe needs your imagination and your ability to establish whether an idea works,” Minister Mavetera told students.
