The Kenya National Innovation Agency (KeNIA) brought together 25 Vice Chancellors and Deputy Vice Chancellors for an Entrepreneurial Leaders’ Training Program (ELTP) designed to accelerate innovation and commercialization in Kenya’s higher education sector.
Held under the banner of the Entrepreneurial Institutions Maturity Framework (EIMF), the training marks a pivotal moment in Kenya’s national Research-to-Commercialization (R2C) strategy, aimed at transforming research outputs into scalable, market-ready solutions.
“Universities are Kenya’s most vital innovation engines,” said Dr. Tonny Omwansa, CEO of KeNIA. “Through this program, we are enabling Vice Chancellors to lead systemic change, embed innovation in teaching and governance, and ensure research benefits society.”
Presiding over the high-level training was Prof. Abdulrazak Shaukat, the Principal Secretary for Science, Research, and Innovation, called on universities to become catalysts for demand-driven research, commercialization, and local job creation.
“Universities are no longer ivory towers—they must be centres of real-world problem-solving,” said Prof. Shaukat. “We are committed to scaling Research and Development (R&D) investment, setting up national think tanks, and strengthening science diplomacy so that no innovator or institution is left behind.”
Despite being among Africa’s top three countries in research output, Kenya still commercializes less than 10% of its academic research. Through ELTP, university leaders are now working to:
● Reform governance structures that enable innovation
● Establish Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs)
● Allocate funding for commercialization efforts
● Embed entrepreneurial thinking in curricula
● Forge stronger partnerships with industry and alumni
The initiative builds on KeNIA’s efforts to support 14 universities through the Kenya Network of Entrepreneurial Institutional Leaders (KNEIL). The 2025 training welcomed an additional 11 institutions to the third cohort, further expanding national capacity for innovation-driven transformation.
Vice Chancellors presented initiatives ranging from biogas-to-market programs and IP filings to student-led health tech ventures and AI-powered tools for agriculture. Notable highlights include:
● Crackfox, supported by University of Embu, secured $890,000 in international funding in partnership with Michigan University
● Ksh. 10 million awarded through the Presidential Innovation Fund to top university-led startups including Afyalishe
● 11 patents filed by KCA University following KeNIA’s institutional innovation support
● Maasai Mara University established a Technology Transfer Office and is commercializing its bioenergy and agricultural research