CPUT signs MoU with JKUAT in Nairobi

A CPUT delegation recently visited the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) in Nairobi, Kenya, to formally sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two institutions.

The visit represented a significant milestone in a partnership that has developed over several years, elevating a long-standing academic collaboration to a formal institutional agreement.

The CPUT delegation, led by Prof Marshall Sheldon, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Technology Innovation and Partnerships, included Prof Joseph Kioko, Dean: Faculty of Applied Sciences, Dr Vusi Mshayisa, Senior lecturer and leader of the Edible Insects Research Group, Department of Food Science and Technology and Dr Divinia Jithoo, Director: Strategic Initiatives, Internationalisation and Partnerships.

The delegation was welcomed by members of JKUAT’s senior leadership, including Dr John Kinyuru, Senior Lecturer and collaborative partner of Dr Mshayisa, Prof Jackson Kwanza, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Production and Extension, Prof Robert Kinyua, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Academic Affairs, Prof Benard Ikua, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Finance and Administration, among others.

The MoU was signed by Sheldon and Kwanza, formalising a commitment with its origins in an initial meeting nearly a decade earlier. In 2019, at a conference in Harare, Mshayisa and Kinyuru began a research collaboration that would develop into a sustained partnership focused on edible insects as a sustainable food source. In the years that followed, the two academics co-supervised Master's students, co-authored publications, examined one another's postgraduate theses, and undertook reciprocal staff visits, establishing the foundation for a developing funding pipeline between the two institutions.

Following the signing ceremony, the delegation visited JKUAT's Department of Food Science and Technology and the JKUAT Enterprises (JKUATES) unit, gaining insight into the university's research infrastructure and its approach to translating academic work into applied, commercial outcomes. These visits provided CPUT delegates with a clearer understanding of the practical foundations that will support the partnership going forward, including insect-rearing facilities, food product development capability, and opportunities for the shared exchange of technology and expertise between the two universities.

The signing of this MoU reflects CPUT's Vision 2030 commitment to Smart Internationalisation, and its ambition to deepen research collaboration across the African continent through partnerships grounded in genuine, sustained academic relationships. The collaboration between Mshayisa and Kinyuru stands as an example of how individual scholarly relationships can, over time, develop into

institutional commitments that create opportunities for students and researchers on both sides.

The CPUT delegation's visit to Kenya continued beyond JKUAT, with the group travelling on to Eldoret to participate in the U6+ Conference, where CPUT engaged further with partner universities across the network on postgraduate training and student leadership development.

The CPUT-JKUAT partnership is expected to expand in the coming years, with the existing groundwork in edible insect research anticipated to broaden into wider collaboration in food science and sustainable agriculture between the two institutions.

Written by CPUT News
Email: news@cput.ac.za