Innovation Fellowship Program

The Innovation Fellowship is a flagship initiative under the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Pillar of AFRETEC. The program is designed to nurture the next generation of African innovators and problem-solvers by equipping university students and young professionals with practical skills, mentorship, and real-world exposure to co-create solutions with government, industry, and community partners.

The fellowship aims to bridge the gap between academia and practice by immersing fellows in hands-on, challenge-driven innovation cycles. Fellows work in interdisciplinary teams to solve pressing local problems using emerging technologies, data, and human-centered design approaches.

Program Structure

Recruitment: The fellowship targets top-performing students and recent graduates from AFRETEC partner institutions.
Innovation Sprints: Fellows participate in a series of co-creation sprints tackling real-world challenges submitted by public and private sector actors.
Mentorship: Each team is paired with industry and academic mentors to guide technical development and solution refinement.
Capacity Building: Fellows undergo intensive workshops on design thinking, digital tools, project management, and pitching.
Solution Deployment: Selected solutions are supported to pilot with stakeholders, and promising innovations are linked to incubation or acceleration pathways.

Expected Outcomes

Scalable, context-driven solutions addressing sociaetal challenges at the local level.
Strengthened collaboration between academia, industry, and government.
A growing pipeline of innovation-driven talent equipped to lead digital transformation in
the University.

The inaugural cohort of the AFRETEC Innovation Fellowship was officially launched on 30th April 2025 at the University of Nairobi’s C4DLab. The event brought together fellows, university leadership, challenge partners, and the broader innovation ecosystem to mark the beginning of a transformative journey.

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