Regional Universities Forum : Farmers, Student Researchers Honoured

Actors and partners attending the 19th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Regional Universities Forum dubbed (RUFORUM) have closed the curtains for the session amidst award to some outstanding farmers and students. After a week-long discussion on how universities can boost agro-pastoral production while improving production findings, some 600 participants from over 40 African countries have honoured five outstanding upcoming young scientists, five outstanding student researchers as well as three outstanding farmers. This was at the end of the forum yesterday, November 2, 2023 at the Yaounde Conference Centre, in the presence of several government ministers. During the closing event, the AGM also awarded certificates to new member universities. The Zamzam University of Science and Technology, Somalia, awarded a special prize to RUFORUM.
The Minister of State, Minister of Higher Education, Jacques Fame Ndongo in his closing remarks underscored the importance of engaging governments and development partners in supporting Higher Education in Africa for a sustainable development of the continent. Throwing light on the theme of the forum: “Transforming Higher Education to Sustainably Feed and Create Prosperity for Africa,” Professor Jacques Fame Ndongo said the agricultural sector is indeed a sector for inclusive development in the African continent especially as the continent alone has more than 60 per cent of its land not yet exploited. Hence, the need for development partners to provide a platform for agricultural research for development in the university milieu.
The Vice Chancellor of the University of Bamenda, Professor Theresia Nkuo-Akenji, who is also the Board chair of RUFORUM lauded the contributions of stakeholders from some 163 universities in Africa. She explained tha...