Malawi Launches Innovation Hub to Empower Youth
The Unipod aims to create a "market-ready knowledge system" that benefits all key industries in Malawi, ultimately contributing to "wealth creation," Chakwera explained.
BLANTYRE, Malawi— President Lazarus Chakwera on Wednesday announced the launch of a new innovation hub aimed at empowering young Malawians and driving the country's transition to a digital economy, writes Winston Mwale.
"The Malawi we all aspire for rests on a youth-centric industrial revolution of which innovation is a major component," Chakwera said during the launch ceremony at the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS).
The University Innovation Pod (Unipod) facility, established in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is designed to be a "hi-tech innovation hub," according to Chakwera.
"This facility is set up on a triumvirate of innovation, entrepreneurship and job creation," he said, emphasizing the hub's focus on fostering economic development.
The Unipod aims to create a "market-ready knowledge system" that benefits all key industries in Malawi, ultimately contributing to "wealth creation," Chakwera explained.
He also highlighted the hub's potential to impact communities beyond the university, stating, "I am delighted to learn that the hub will be accessible to larger communities outside the university thereby honing innovation skills of the whole country in the process."
The launch of the Unipod facility marks a significant step towards achieving the goals outlined in Malawi Vision 2063, the country's long-term development strategy, which emphasizes the importance of innovation and youth empowerment.