The University of Zambia (UNZA) and BongoHive Innovations Limited have signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that strengthens collaboration between academia and industry to turn research, student innovation, and faculty ideas into real-world solutions and scalable enterprises.
UNZA Vice-Chancellor Prof. Mundia Muya said the MoU reflects the University’s commitment to becoming a source of national solutions.
“Our students and researchers generate valuable knowledge. This partnership ensures these ideas do not remain in academic documents, but evolve into innovations that address real challenges,” he said.
BongoHive Co-founder and Executive Director Lukonga Lindunda noted that the collaboration will connect talent with opportunity.
“By combining UNZA’s academic strength with BongoHive’s experience in building startups and supporting innovators, we are creating a clear route from classroom to company, from research to industry,” he said.
The partnership will focus on:
- Supporting student and faculty innovation through incubation, mentorship, entrepreneurship training and industry exposure.
- Advancing joint innovation initiatives such as the UNZA Innovation Challenge and the development of the UNIPod AI Hub.
- Facilitating collaborative research, innovation projects and grant applications in key national sectors.
- Establishing pathways for commercialisation of research and intellectual property while maintaining institutional independence.
The MoU was signed at the University of Zambia and witnessed by university leadership, BongoHive representatives, students, and development partners. The partnership establishes a structured pathway to support student entrepreneurship, commercialise research, and build Zambia’s innovation capacity.