Page 44 - 41st Summit Brochure

BY JAMES MPHANDE,
MUST COMMUNICATIONS

MANAGER
he Malawi University
of Science and
Technology (MUST)
Tis a leading science,
technology, innovation and
entrepreneurial institution
of higher education which
believes in making education
and training relevant and in
line with national, regional
and global development
aspirations.
The university believes
that universities must open
up to local communities and
industry.
In line with this, all
programmes at MUST are
carefully conceived and
developed to respond to
socioeconomic needs of
Malawi, Africa and beyond. Oxygen concentrator invented by MUST students with HEPSSA funding
Industrial park A slice of MUST’s ‘doing
MUST has embarked
on construction of an
industrial park that will house business unusual’
manufacturing plants for both
the university and interested
industry partners to produce
various products. While irrespective of their education
MUST will generate income backgrounds. This is in line
to supplement government
to supplement government with Malawi government’s plan
public
as
subvention
42 subvention as a a public of making mining a priority area
for economic development.
university and accord its
university and accord its
students hands-on experience
students hands-on experience
through attachments, SADC Regional Program
the industrial park’s main MUST is also implementing
contribution will be to national a project supported by the
socio-economic development Royal Academy of Engineering
of Malawi and the region. in the UK entitled “Higher
Community innovations Education Partnerships
support for Sub-Saharan Africa
Through the MUST Institute (HEPSSA)”. The program
of Industrial Research and is strengthening university-
Innovation (MIIRI), MUST is industry linkages and is being
running a programme aimed implemented at MUST as a
at promoting innovations hub in partnership with the
through incubation garage. regional partners: Lilongwe
There are several projects University of Agriculture and
under this incubation garage Natural Resources in Malawi,
where innovative ideas from Mbeya University of Science
faculty, students, industry and Technology in Tanzania
and community members are and Central University of
banked and grown through Technology in South Africa.
mentorship, theoretical, The partners are jointly
technical and 昀nancial implementing programs that
support. While the 昀rst three His Excellency Dr Lazarus Chakwera appreciating some are strengthening engineering
groups of bene昀ciaries can of the products from MUST education, including student
be considered educated, the industrial attachment and
latter includes even those who the six community innovators programme in small scale exchange of postdoctoral
have no any recognized formal enrolled under the community mineral processing, targeting students.
education. innovators programme at out of school youths from
One such person is Gabriel MUST. He is joined in the across Malawi. Through a
Kondesi who dropped out of programme by, among others, partnership with Ministry of
primary school but has a mind MUST biomedical engineering Youth’s Jobs for Youth program,
of a seasoned physicist. In graduate Mike Lulu Ten and which has been funded by the
late 2000s, he was arrested Chaminade Secondary School African Development Bank,
by the Malawi Government alumni Davie Jere. MUST has graduated 124
authorities for designing radio incubates in ceramics, small
equipment, establishing and Jobs for Youths scale mineral processing and
running a radio station without MUST is also running a quarrying. This programme For more information:
license. Kondesi is now one of technology and incubation too is recruiting youths registrar@must.ac.mw

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