UPLIFT-Ag 2nd Consortium Meeting – Nyanga, Zimbabwe (March 2025)

The UPLIFT-Ag Project convened its 2nd Consortium Meeting from 5–7 March 2025 in Nyanga, Zimbabwe, gathering partners from nine African and three European universities together with industry representatives. The discussions focused on strengthening agriculture curricula, adopting innovative teaching methods, enhancing university–industry linkages, and building entrepreneurial capacity. The meeting produced a clear roadmap for capacity building, strategies for incubators and technology transfer, and practical insights from field visits to local agro-industries.

Strengthening Agriculture Curriculum and Industry Linkages in Africa

Introduction

The Universities Promoting Linkages for Impactful Training, Innovation and Technology Transfer in Agriculture (UPLIFT-Ag) project held its 2nd Consortium Meeting from 5th–7th March 2025 at MontClair Hotel, Nyanga, Zimbabwe.

The meeting brought together 34 participants (27 men, 7 women) from nine African partner universities across Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi and Zimbabwe, and three EU partner institutions from Germany, Denmark and Italy, and representatives from Zimbabwe’s agricultural industry.

The meeting focused on innovative curriculum reforms and improved teaching methods (WP3), while also reviewing progress in university–industry linkages (Wp2), and innovation and entrepreneurship incubation (Wp1).

🌱 Key Highlights & Outcomes

1. Curriculum Review

• Universities in Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi, and Zimbabwe to incorporatee precision agriculture, AI, climate change, agribusiness, and value addition into agriculture programmes.
• Innovative teaching methods such as flipped classrooms, computer simulations, project-based learning, and competence-based education were

2. Strengthening University–Industry Linkages

• Universities held feedback workshops with industry partners, developed strategies such as business cafés, and established platforms for collaboration.
• Key challenges identified include student demotivation, lack of soft skills, and limited internship opportunities.

3. Entrepreneurship and Innovation (WP4)

• Discussions focused on building incubators and technology transfer offices (TTOs).
• Six thematic work groups were formed to develop operational manuals, business models, and mentorship strategies for start-ups and green innovations.

4. Capacity Building Plans

• Partners agreed on training topics in curriculum development, teaching methods, digital education, and policy advocacy.
• Training materials and timelines (April–June 2025) were developed, with facilitators drawn from both African and EU partners.

5. Leadership & Next Steps

• Chairmanship of the Project Steering Committee was handed over to Robert Musundire (CUT, Zimbabwe).
• New country leaders were appointed: TTU (Kenya), UNILAK (Rwanda), University of Ngozi (Burundi), ZOU (Zimbabwe).
• Upcoming activities include benchmarking visits to Italy.

📅 Daily Highlights

Day 1 – 5th March 2025

• Official opening session with remarks from partner institutions.
• Progress reports from universities in Zimbabwe, Kenya, Rwanda, and Burundi.
• Review of curriculum reforms to integrate emerging issues like AI, climate resilience, and value addition.
• Discussions on improved teaching methods with contributions from EU partners.

Day 2 – 6th March 2025

• Focus on industry partnerships and incubator development.
• Universities presented strategies such as policy dialogues, forums, and joint research with industries.
• Work Package 4 teams drafted frameworks for incubators, business models, and mentorship programmes.
• Capacity building plans were finalized with timelines.

Day 3 – 7th March 2025

• Field visits to Claremont Apple Farm and a trout fish farm, where delegates learned about practical training opportunities for students.

Networking visit to Rhodes World View for cultural and team-building experiences.

📸 Photo Highlights

Members learn about Apples packaging at Claremont Apple Farm

🙏 Acknowledgements

The UPLIFT-Ag consortium thanks the hosts Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) and Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) for their hospitality.

We also acknowledge the support of partner universities in Kenya (Kenyatta University, Chuka University, Taita Taveta University), Rwanda (University of Rwanda, UNILAK), Burundi (University of Burundi, University of Ngozi), and EU partners (HNU – Germany, UCPH – Denmark, UNIVPM – Italy).

This project is funded by the European Union under the Erasmus+ Programme (Call: ERASMUS-EDU-2023-CBHE).

Report compiled by the Secretariat: Ms. Judy Wamuya (CU), Prof. Shelmith Munyiri (CU), Dr. Rumbidzai Makanda (CUT).

📥 Full Report

For detailed session notes, presentations, and outcomes, download the full proceedings here:
👉 [Download Full Report here]