Fungai Lupande
Mashonaland Central Bureau
FARMERS, businesses and communities in Mashonaland Central are set to benefit from research-driven innovations in agriculture, industrial production, water management and climate resilience under a new partnership between the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) and the province.
The partnership, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on Tuesday, seeks to translate academic research into practical solutions by bringing universities, Government institutions, businesses and communities together to address local development challenges.
The agreement between UZ and the Office of the President and Cabinet in Mashonaland Central will facilitate joint research, identification of development priorities, design of interventions and monitoring of projects.
Mashonaland Central Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Christopher Magomo said the collaboration must deliver tangible improvements in people’s lives rather than remain an agreement on paper.
He challenged the university to ensure research and innovation resulted in technologies, marketable products and improved services.
“Our farmers in Mount Darwin must benefit from improved agricultural technologies, our industries must access innovation that can help productivity, and our young people must find opportunities for skills development and entrepreneurship,” he said.
Minister Magomo said UZ’s existing Takare research and technology model provided a foundation for expanding collaboration and accelerating community development.
He encouraged the university to work with provincial development structures, local authorities, businesses and communities to identify challenges, develop practical solutions and commercialise successful innovations.
He said the partnership’s success would be measured through improvements in service delivery, business innovation, livelihoods and citizen satisfaction.
UZ Vice-Chancellor Professor Paul Mapfumo said the agreement marked a departure from the traditional ivory tower approach to higher education, placing universities at the centre of community transformation.
“The ivory tower philosophy belonged to yesterday. We are here to formalise a partnership that heightens our collaboration,” he said.
Prof Mapfumo said UZ would mobilise expertise from its various faculties to advance science, technology and innovation in line with the Heritage-Based Education 5.0 philosophy.
He said communities would participate in identifying challenges, designing interventions and monitoring implementation to ensure projects addressed their actual needs.
“As a university, we don’t claim that we know all or we can do all, but what we claim is we are available to work and cooperate with all the teams and partners we have in the province,” he said.
Provincial Director of Local Government Services Ms Priscilla Dube said the agreement came at a critical time as Mashonaland Central pursued its ambition of becoming a modern, industrialised and knowledge-driven province.
She identified climate-smart agriculture, resilience to El Niño-induced droughts, mineral and agricultural value addition, water provision, governance and devolution as priority areas where university expertise could make a difference.
UZ Executive Director for Research, Innovation and Industrialisation Prof Florence Mtambanengwe said the agreement embraced all five pillars of Education 5.0: teaching and learning, research, community outreach, innovation and industrialisation.
She said this demonstrated the province’s commitment to a comprehensive partnership extending beyond academic research to practical innovation and industrial development.
The collaboration is expected to support National Development Strategy 2 priorities, including food security, inclusive economic growth, infrastructure development, climate resilience, technological innovation and human capital development.
Both institutions will develop implementation plans, timelines and measurable targets to ensure the partnership delivers tangible benefits to communities across Mashonaland Central.
