HARARE, Zimbabwe – Midlands State University (MSU) demonstrated its strength as a hub for innovation, securing six awards at the third Presidential Innovation Fair held on 11 December 2025, at the Harare International Conference Centre (HICC) in Harare.
The event, themed “Innovation for economic growth: From prototype to commercialisation,” highlighted Zimbabwe’s drive to translate academic research into market-ready solutions.
His Excellency President E.D. Mnangagwa charged institutions and innovators to aim for global impact, stating, “Our innovators must be globally competitive. We must support and equip our innovators to make them thrive.”
He further emphasised the critical need for commercialisation, instructing that “The Ministry of Education should commercialise innovation and technology.”
This vision was operationalised through the fair itself, described by Dr. C. D. G. N. Chiwenga, as a platform “set to give a platform to individuals with innovative ideas in order to allow investors to talk to them on a one-to-one basis.”
MSU innovators secured notable second-place finishes, including Dr. N. Zinyama, who secured second place in the Women Innovator category for her discovery of gamma secretase inhibitors for breast cancer therapy using chemogenomic methods.
In Industry-Academia Collaboration, MSU earned second place for co-developing the Duraisiphala 263 ICT platform in collaboration with the ITS department, the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development (MHTEISTD) and other state universities.
Mr. Landel Lunga secured second place in the Student Innovator category for producing ferric and ferrous sulphate from scrap metal using an eco-friendly reactor, while Mr. T.C Madzokere earned second place in the Mining category for developing novel nano-engineered reagents for mineral froth flotation.
Complementing these individual achievements, the University was honoured with third place for Institutional Excellence, recognising its overall ecosystem for supporting research and development.
Additionally, Mr. A. Chindedza secured third place in the competitive innovation business pitching segment.
In his closing remarks, Midlands State University Vice Chancellor Professor V.N. Muzvidziwa, speaking in his capacity as the Chairperson of Vice Chancellors for Zimbabwe’s Public Universities, linked the fair’s purpose to the national trajectory of development.
“Vision 2030 will be realised on the foundation of a robust innovation culture,” he stated. “This fair demonstrates the talent; our task is to build the framework that allows it to thrive and drive economic growth.”
This collective achievement underscores MSU’s commitment to advancing the knowledge economy through research, while nurturing both its students and staff to become innovators of impact.