The University-Industry Linkage & International Programmes Directorate (U-IL & IP) situated at the Main Campus of Karatina University, was established in August 2018. The major mandate of the Directorate is tapping into the relevant partnership (industry and institutions) opportunities that can benefit both the University and the country at large. The Directorate is focused on engaging the industry partners, both in public and private sectors to collaborate on areas that are of mutual benefit towards the realization of the University’s Strategic Plan and Kenya’s Vision 2030. This is a premier Directorate seeking to influence entrepreneurial partnerships and collaborations in the manufacturing and service sectors in Kenya.
Engagement with industry and business is vital to Karatina University’s success as an entrepreneurial university. This success is will be achieved by conducting both basic and applied research and pursuing innovations that are relevant to industry, businesses and communities. These initiatives are significant since they address globalization, environmental, and health and social challenges which are critical for KarU’s growth, Kenya’s Vision 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Directorate endeavors to transform academia- industry relationship across Kenya based on four pillars namely: Partnerships, Staff Exchange Programme (SEP), Student Award Scheme (SAS), and Resource Mobilization. These pillars further enable the University to focus on its competitive strengths, prioritizing ethics and integrity, pursuing interdisciplinary and utilizing collaboration and existing resources.
Using a mix of local relevance with well selected international collaborations and partnerships, the Directorate is transforming the corporate industry in Kenya through the development of short corporate management and leadership courses aimed at transforming firm managers and entrepreneurs. Through such short courses, the Directorate hopes to bring together great innovative minds and professionals from not only Kenya but other African countries, who are leading change in their spheres of influence with the aim of supporting, training and incubating their entrepreneurial ideas into economically viable products.