The Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) through one of its youth and jobs projects, the Ajira Digital Program, has been taking part at the Commercialization and Entrepreneurial Institutions’ Leaders (Ceil) Summit 2024 organized by the Kenya National Innovation Agency (Kenia). The two-day summit which started on Thursday to Friday has seen the attendance of the private sector, research institutions, universities, startups and innovators, and policy makers all focusing on unpacking the theme: Youth, Jobs and Wealth Creation Through Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

The discussions throughout the Summit aimed to catalyze a shift in Kenya's research and entrepreneurial ecosystems, while highlighting existing efforts and opportunities for Institutions, Industry and Innovators. The CEIL Summit is hosted annually by the Kenya National Innovation Agency (KeNIA) to enhance Kenya's innovation journey, with a focus on strengthening the research to commercialization process, championing innovations for practical solutions, enabling policy advocacy, and fostering industry-academia linkages.

The Summit was officially opened by Ismail Maalim, the Principal Secretary, State Department of Youth Affairs and Creative Economy in the company of Dr. Beatrice Muganda Inyangala, the Principal Secretary, the State Department for Higher Education and Research, Ministry of Education. Among the attendance representing KEPSA and the private sector include Dr. Ehud Gachugu, Global Director Youth, Jobs and Ajira Digital; Dr. Kevit Desai, Chair CBaas African Academic Board; Ken Mwenda, Managing Director at eMobilis; Rosalind Gichuru, Director Marketing and Communications, Kenya Commercial Bank Group, among others.

While officially opening the Summit, Maalim pointed out that with over 800,000 young people graduating from institutions of higher learning and with the limited number of available employment opportunities in the market, there is a need to collaboratively support innovation and entrepreneurship among the youth in order to help expand work opportunities and ensure a sustainable future. He added that there is need to foster a culture of innovation among the institutions of learning and including the private sector in investing on these incubation hubs so as to drive entrepreneurship opportunities and solve societies complex issues.

Inyangala also highlighted that there is need for higher education to enhance activities that help develop innovation and entrepreneurship. She added that given the emerging trends defined by technology and other sustainability issues, there is an unpredictable future which calls for all to restrategize and explore the skills required for the future. Additionally, Universities cannot continue depending on the exchequer for their sustainability but should explore on private sector investment. She challenged the innovators and the academicians in the room to even start with solving for instance the boda boda parts which the country still imports from Japan. She called all stakeholders to work together to ensure that the knowledge offered in these institutions of education impact on all the young people and the ecosystem.

In a panel session moderated by Dr. Gachugu on the topic of whether the universities are doing enough to attract private sector investment, he introduced the session by explaining that Africa currently boasts some of the fastest-growing economies in the world and the region has benefited from increased inward investment, growing trade and tourism, and expansion of the service sector. However, the extractive industries on which a number of countries rely still leave their economies vulnerable to fluctuations in international commodity markets, and the resources on which they depend will eventually be exhausted. It is essential that African countries diversify their economies and develop the high levels of knowledge production and skills needed to sustain high-tech and creative industries.

Dr. Gachugu highlighted that as the apex organization of the private sector in Kenya, KEPSA has been at the forefront of championing the socio-economic transformation of the country by fostering innovation, promoting entrepreneurship, and enhancing youth employability while providing solutions to businesses. He then invited the discussants to defend their opinions on the much that the universities are doing to attract the private sector investment while engaging the audience to rate the discussion.

Starting the discussion was Prof. Justice Bawole, a professor of Public Administration and Management and Dean of the University of Ghana Business School, Legon. Prof. Bawole explained that lecturers spend more time trying to create platforms that promote innovation that can attract investment of the private sector. He expounded the same stating that for a long-time the universities have been known as research institutions but different factors have also pushed the institutions to get out of their comfort and seek opportunities in the industries to ensure their students access practical skills in addition to theoretical skills. He added that currently the development of curriculum for most universities in Africa are made possible through collaboration with industries.

Prof. Robert Gateru, Vice Chancellor Riara University additionally added to the debate explaining that the universities have been time and again hammered and said to be producing half baked graduates despite all the efforts by the institutions to incorporate the feedback drawn from industrial attachments through their students. Using the example of Riara, Prof. Gateru said that 93 per cent of his graduates are employable within the one year after graduation. He then urged the industries present to keep on sharing insights and their requirements with such institutions to ensure they are helping them produce qualified candidates for the available work opportunities within the market.

Arguing on the efforts applied by universities to win private sector investment, Naomi Kirungu, Lead Partnership Communications and SME at the Africa Management Institute advised the universities that the currency for investment is data and these can be used to show impact and help attract investment. She explained that most universities do not produce reports on their impact and when approaching potential investors are not able to convince them. She also added that emerging issues on agriculture and climate will require universities to go out of their comfort zone to find possible solutions and prepare their students on skills relevant to solve these problems.

Dr. Desai a champion on agriculture initiatives at the University of Nairobi explained that for everything to work, there is a need to look at the entire ecosystem. Explaining the ethos for private sector which include productivity, diversification of value chain, access to wider markets and such like values, Desai called universities to ensure on tools necessary to meet these values and the needs for the industries. The universities need to work on clusters where they locate sectors and seek ways to serve these sectors with qualified workforce. He urged the universities to explore the problems out here and work towards solving them through innovation and entrepreneurships. He added that there is need to cease opportunities from our problems, have dialogue, walk together with a common objective and find ways to cooperate.

In conclusion, the session explained on how has the education system in Kenya and especially the universities can collaborate with the private sector to foster economic growth and create job opportunities for the youth. These includes skills-industry collaboration, establishment of entrepreneurship programs, funding and investment to support research and innovation, and engaging in policy advocacy to create a conducive environment for private sector investment.