The 21st RUFORUM Annual General Meeting (AGM), held from 1st to 5th December 2025 in Gaborone, Botswana, brought together African universities, policymakers, development partners, and youth stakeholders to explore how higher education can drive inclusive and sustainable development. Under the theme “Positioning Africa’s Universities and the Higher Education Sector to Effectively Impact Development Processes on the Continent,” the AGM emphasized universities’ evolving role as catalysts of innovation, agripreneurship, and agri-food systems transformation.
Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), Tanzania’s leading agricultural institution, played a central role in these discussions. Represented by a strong Tanzanian delegation that included faculty and researchers from the AGRIFOSE-RIH project, SUA shared practical experiences demonstrating how universities can promote climate-smart agriculture, youth empowerment, value addition, and sustainable food systems.
During the session on Transformative Education and Ecosystem Engagement, Prof. Maulid Mwatawala, SUA’s Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic, Research and Consultancy, reiterated the existing university’s foundational mission of nurturing practical skills for rural transformation on a vision rooted in SUA’s history since 1984.
SUA’s contributions went beyond academic dialogue. Through the AGRIFOSE-RIH initiative, the university involved on how academic research can be integrated into entrepreneurship and value-chain development, particularly in rice and horticulture. The programme exemplifies how universities can empower youth and marginalized groups while advancing sustainable agribusiness models. Other members from from agrifose-rih representing SUA were Dr. Hamis Tindwa (Director of Undergraduate Studies – SUA), Dr. Nyambilila Amuri (Principal College of Agriculture – SUA), Dr. Nuria Majaliwa (SUA), Dr. Christopher Magomba (SUA), Prof. Edwin Mtei (Dean of the School of Life Sciences and Bioengineering – NM-AIST), Dr. Leonard Binamungu (UD), Ms. Nasero Muze (SUA).
These efforts align closely with Africa’s broader development agendas, including the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063, both of which emphasize the role of science, innovation, and higher education in transforming agricultural systems and livelihoods.
In strategic dialogues and technical sessions, SUA engaged in discussions on strengthening university–industry partnerships, promoting agripreneurship incubation, leveraging digital technologies, and integrating gender-responsive and action-oriented research into postgraduate training.
Sokoine University of Agriculture
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