Vice Chancellor, Prof. Mabel Imbuga (left), DVC, Finace, Prof. Otoki (centre) and AFRICA – ai- JAPAN Chief Adviser, Prof. Tsunoda Manabu lead staff and students on the newly unveiled road
Plans to extend and renovate the Agricultural Laboratory Building (ALB) got a shot in the arm following completion of access road to the facility. ALB which houses laboratories and offices is to be modernized through a joint initiative between JICA under the auspices of the AFRICA–ai-JAPAN Project and JKUAT.
The move to modernize the building is aimed at responding to emerging training, research and technology transfer needs of Kenya and Africa at large.
Food production in the horn of Africa has been hampered by among other things, erratic weather, diseases, and non-data-driven agricultural practices. In Kenya, for instance, the endemic drought has been cited as a cause of soaring food prices leading to high cost of living. This has called for new approaches; which JKUAT is keen to offer.
The University is working with partners drawn from various parts of the world such as Japan to benchmark global best practices in agricultural teaching and research.
The access road
AFRICA–ai-JAPAN Project is a JICA initiative aimed at supporting successful implementation of the JKUAT hosted Pan African University Institute for Basic Sciences Technology and Innovation (PAUSTI) by strengthening the foundation for research and education in the two institutions towards African innovation
Also within the initiative, JKUAT is currently spearheading a number of innovation research activities in key areas such as food security and value addition; biodiversity and conservation; animal health and production; and bio-resources and waste management.