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The CUEA Innovation Hub

About the Innovation Hub

The CUEA Innovation Hub is the perfect place for young people to refine and promote their ideas, enhance their knowledge on various matters and most important build their network. We are filling the gap between entrepreneurs with great ideas and those with the expertise to make them a reality.

 Our facility is housed within the CUEA, LRC Library building, it is a space where students with ideas can meet to utilize available resources for the actualization of their ideas.  The services and amenities offered here aim to provide a vibrant and dynamic environment where opportunities for collaboration and innovation are nurtured.

 Our collaboration spaces include community desks, whiteboards, a seating area, and High-Speed free internet access.

UNVELING OF THE INNOVATION HUB

On 26th April 2022, the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) launched its Innovation Hub. The hub was established through the African Higher Education Leadership in Advancing Inclusive Innovation for Development (AHEAD) Project funded by Erasmus Plus and the European Union. It is dedicated to students, faculty, alumni, and community mentors who come together to collaborate in developing research and innovative ideas that can solve challenges facing humanity. The objective of the hub is to develop and nurture innovative ideas that once mature can be commercialised and scaled thereby not only tapping and nurturing the talents of young people but also solving real problems, creating opportunities, ultimately generating wealth and alleviating poverty in line with Sustainable Development Goals.

The vision of CUEA is to be a world-class University producing transformative leaders for Church and Society. The Hub plugs into its Research and Community Service pillars creating an innovation ecosystem that brings together a network of people and institutions to create new knowledge and innovations that can feed back into the classroom as well as provide solutions.

What We Do.

  1. Advocacy: Advocating on behalf of startups and early-stage entrepreneurs
  2. Amenities: Local support system that improves the overall lifestyle, through research output.
  3. Build the ecosystem: Building and bringing together the roles and support network and system of investors, entrepreneurs, hubs, programs, etc.
  4. Capital: Providing investment and funding when possible.
  5. Community: Bringing together communities of practice around the entrepreneurial, industry, and technical groups.
  6. Create culture: Building the entrepreneurial culture as compared to traditional service-based and salary-focused mindsets.
  7. Customers and Markets: Access to customers, markets, and supply chains for new entrepreneurial products and services.
  8. Entrepreneurial support: Content and support specific to entrepreneurial capability and capacity, such as mindset or rapid growth and scale.
  9. Industry support: Content and support specific to industry sectors such as agriculture or resources.
  10. Infrastructure: Provision of effective transportation, logistics, and internet that can support entrepreneurs focused on global markets.
  11. Local impact: Emphasis on applying entrepreneurial focus on local challenges and opportunities, in addition to identifying opportunities for application in similar challenges in other regions.
  12. Marketing and promotion: Getting the word out about the local entrepreneur through case studies, awards programs, and other promotional activities.
  13. Mentors: Individuals who can provide technical, business, industry, and personal coaching support.
  14. Networks: Access to networks not otherwise available, sponsoring the entrepreneur into new circles through introductions and acting as a “boundary spanner” across the geographic, industry, technical, and socio-economic class circles.
  15. Personal development: Support for developing new skills and overall mental health towards an entrepreneurial mindset.
  16. Policy: Developing policy related to entrepreneurial activities, indicated by the ease of starting a business, procurement with large institutions, and development and trial of new technologies.
  17. Research: Developing new technologies that can be accessed by entrepreneurs for shared IP from commercialization.
  18. Technical support: Support for technical skills and people with technical skills required for the entrepreneur’s business.
  19. Youth entrepreneurs: Emphasis on developing entrepreneurial capability in young people.

Our team

Rev. Prof. Stephen Mbugua Ngari

Rector & Vice-Chancellor

Dr. Joseph Gitari

Coordinator

Dr. Paul Mathenge

Director, Graduates

The hub provides a vital shift from theory to practical learning which creates a great connection between the Faculties, Students, Alumni, Researchers, Pastoral agents, with industry in positively responding to human challenges such as inequalities, health, climate change, while at the same time tapping into technological opportunities that come with internet of things, big data, artificial intelligence and block chain technologies.

The CUEA Innovation Hub provides a physical working space, computers, consultancy and research databases for the collaborators to generate and incubate ideas. The CUEA Innovation Hub is housed in the University’s award winning Library and Learning Resource Centre that is also recognised as one of the greenest buildings in Africa.