JKUAT council chairman asks Government, Private Sector to support innovations

The Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology Chairman of Council Prof Paul Kanyari Njuki has called on the Government, public and private sector to support innovation developments in Universities to benefit end users and the achievement of the Big Four Agenda.

He said Kenyan universities are endowed with talented and innovative students and staff who dedicate themselves to providing solutions to challenges facing society, but lacked the push to actualise their dreams.

Addressing students, staff and communities that attended the JKUAT’s 10th Open Day at the University’s main campus in Juja Friday, Prof Kanyari urged the government to help JKUAT fast track mass production of the developed innovations so that they can be available and benefit Kenyans, and by extension , for the achievement of the Big Four Agenda.

“We require support  from both public and private sector to hold our young innovators and researchers ‘hand as they make efforts to surmount challenges that come with industrialisation and commercialisation of innovations, ” said Prof. Kanyari.

He said JKUAT has produced a significant number of innovations from its various fields of training such as agriculture, engineering machinery, chemical and beauty products, which had secured patents and trademarks from Kenya’s intellectual property agency, and were ready for commercialisation.

During the exhibition, the Vice Chancellor Prof. Victoria Wambui Ngumi called on stakeholders to identify and adopt beneficial research and innovation outputs offered by JKUAT in solving the various challenges facing the society and country at large.

She called on the students, some of who were drawn from various secondary schools from the country to take advantage of the hands-on-training in the various fields of their interest available at JKUAT and make informed choices when deciding on the institutions to join.

The Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Magoha in a speech delivered on his behalf by the Ministry’s Administrative Secretary Commissioner Peter Okwanyo lauded JKUAT for its contribution towards innovation development and dissemination in the country, a role that he said, had helped the country rank high in Africa.