Job creation and self employment took centre stage at the just concluded forum on research and innovation hosted by the University of Rwanda’s College of Science and Technology. The week-long forum which closed yesterday brought together researchers, academics, young innovators and industry players to deliberate on possible partnerships and way forward to develop research and innovation at the university. The forum observed that innovation was a sure way to develop the technology industry in the country as well as a job creation opportunity. Already, the government has an ambitious target of creating about 200,000 off-farm jobs every year across multiple sectors. Experts speaking at the closure of the forum noted that neither the government nor the private sector can absorb all technology graduates which necessitate self employment. The College Principal Professor Manasse Mbonye said with over a thousand graduates every year in tech related fields from the college alone, the industry cannot absorb all fresh graduates. “This year alone we graduated over 1,000 students from the College of Science and Technology. Government and the private sector can only employ about 100 each, the capacity of the industry is still small,” Mbonye said. He noted that going forward; universities should go beyond building capacities for employment to skills of self employment and innovation. That way the Principal, said, there is a chance that Rwanda can develop a robust local industry. Mbonye advised that learners need to be introduced to the industry and the private sector to increase their involvement and relevance to market needs. Professor Elias Bizuru, the director of research at the College said plans were underway to build a collaborative framework with the government, private sector and civil society to work towards more development- oriented innovations. He said their target is to commercialise at least two innovations from the university in a year’s time and sponsor researchers to focus on innovation. The university will also forge partnerships with the private sector in curriculum development to ensure that graduates are relevant to market needs and national development goals, he said. Since its inception about two years ago, the College of Science and Technology has been making necessary alignments to contribute to national development through research and innovation. The university is expected to engage in research to inform innovations in line with the country’s goals of a technology and knowledge-based economy. There are also plans to engage the institution in research for short term, medium term and long term solutions in line with national development strategies, according to University officials. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
