On Wednesday 12th November 2025, Strathmore Agri-Food Innovation Center Community of Practice hosted a Public Lecture with Heifer International under the topic “Youth, Innovation, Partnerships, and Access to Finance: Shaping the Future of African Agriculture.” The event brought together Heifer International President and country staff, university leadership, staff and students for a focused sequence of showcases, leadership addresses and interactive dialogue.
Dr. Majid’s opening remarks highlighted SAFIC’s role in advancing livestock and food‑systems innovation and noted the efforts of the Community of Practice as a platform that convenes actors from private sector, government, research institutions and development partners, to co‑create data‑driven, technology‑enabled, youth‑centred solutions, with particular emphasis on data interoperability, data sharing and insight generation
SAFIC’s innovation showcase, led by Joseph Theuri from data science team, demonstrated how interoperable market data and applied analytics can inform investment decisions and program targeting. Heifer Kenya then presented its youth‑focused programming; Clarice Bugo‑Kionge, Signature Program Technical Lead, spoke to the nexus of youth, innovation and access to finance, while Country Director Wairimu Munyinyi‑Wahome reflected on Kenya’s leadership in scaling locally rooted approaches and linking national momentum to Heifer’s broader continental strategy.
Strathmore students Joy Muntet and Morris Murigi presented M&S Smart Irrigation Solutions and IMARIKA WeatherWise respectively, walking the room through prototypes, use cases and the pathways they are pursuing to move from campus labs to farmer adoption. Their pitches illustrated the program’s practical purpose: to create visible, testable pathways from student prototypes into incubation, mentorship and financing mechanisms where Heifer and SAFIC can play catalytic roles.
Surita Sandosham, President and CEO of Heifer International, delivered the keynote and issued a clear challenge and invitation. She framed the opportunity that, Africa holds 65 percent of the world’s remaining arable land and hosts the youngest population globally, yet the continent imports more than $43 billion in food yearly, and she told students, “The solutions to Africa’s food challenges will not be imported; they will be invented by you.” Her remarks emphasized networks of trust among farmers, entrepreneurs and institutions, and the critical role of partnerships and finance in scaling youth‑led innovations.
The interactive Q&A, moderated by Dr. Geoffrey Otieno, surfaced practical collaboration questions: How can youth innovation drive livestock transformation? What concrete pathways can route student prototypes into AYuTe and related incubation platforms? How might SAFIC’s analytics be combined with Heifer’s field delivery to test finance mechanisms and market linkages? Participants agreed on a shortlist of immediate follow‑ups: formalise a strategic partnership framework between Heifer and SAFIC, design joint pilot use cases that combine analytics with field implementation, build student engagement pipelines (internships, data challenges, mentorships and seed support), and systematise cross‑country learning to replicate successful Kenya‑Strathmore models regionally.
Article by SAFIC Communications