‘Innovation Journeys through UK Partnerships in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Story of TEA@Sunrise, REACH-PSM and Beyond’ was the title of the inaugural regional webinar hosted by the Innovation for African Universities (IAU) Community of Practice (CoP).

The webinar was organised in partnership with the British Council, and REACH-PSM and facilitated by UKZN’s Academic Leader in the School of Commerce, Professor Thea van der Westhuizen, who also serves as the IAU CoP South African Lead.

The webinar explored innovation pathways and forming strategic partnerships for sub-Saharan universities and entrepreneurship support organisations.

“It was our inaugural webinar as a communities of practice which is a collaboration between universities in Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the United Kingdom,” said van der Westhuizen. “The topic was innovation pathways and there was a case study on innovation journeys through UK partnerships in sub-Saharan Africa telling a story of TEA@Sunrise, PSM and Beyond.”

The webinar included presentations from:

1.  Swansea University’s Professor Matthew Davies, the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Chair in Sustainable Energy Technologies, who shared insights on: Exploring the International Opportunities for Addressing Energy Access by Bringing Next-Generation Solar Technologies to Market.
2. Dr Anne Wacera Wambugu, Head of Electrification and Electricity Access at the UNESCO Chair for Climate Change Resilience and Sustainability at Strathmore University, who spoke on: ‘Global linkages: Innovation through UNESCO and How to Leverage International Network – Policy Influence in Action’.
3. Dr Carol Maddock, a researcher at Swansea University and at Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion at TEA@Sunrise, who presented on the organisation’s strategic university network to revolutionise international solar energy with the aim of addressing global energy poverty by developing next-generation solar technologies.
4. Professor Jiska de Groot, Lead of the TEA (Transforming Energy Access) Learning Partnership at the University of Cape Town (UCT), who spoke on the Origins and Impact of REACH at UCT – Measurable Outcomes to Date – Recommendations for Scaling.
5. Dr Carren Atieno, team leader Laboratory and Product Development of Kenya’s Kijani Testing Limited, who presented on the company’s perspective on an innovation model and results.
6. Mr John Anyanwu, Laboratory Co-ordinator at the African Centre of Excellence in Future Energies and Electrochemical Systems who spoke on the Importance of Knowledge Exchange, Networks and Working Together to Deliver Innovation.

IAU’s COP Regional Chair Dr David Chiawo said the webinar created a space for students in the sub-Saharan region to engage.

“We work for students within the Higher Education systems to explore the best they can be in innovation and entrepreneurship. The African Universities of Community Practice is a network to harness the resource for skill building, capacity development and a space for students to interact. We are going to do more of this, bringing together experts and building an ecosystem to inspire students and build their confidence to be innovators,” said Chiawo.

Said the British Council’s Regional Head of Higher Education Programmes (sub-Saharan Africa) Mr Sam Rametse: “The British Council exists to build connections, understanding and trust between the people of UKZN and other institutions through arts, culture, education and the English language. Within sub-Saharan Africa, we know that we have a bulging youth population which is growing rapidly and is expected to double by 2050. The other reality of the region is that there are few to no stable economic opportunities due to high rates of unemployment. The Innovation for the African Universities project is really a platform which facilitates institutional partnerships between the UK and African Higher Education providers and entrepreneurship ecosystem entities. We do this to strengthen the role that Higher Education Institutions can play within the African entrepreneurship ecosystem.”

The webinar concluded with a question and answer session and an interactive quiz game.

Words: Thandiwe Jumo

Image: Supplied