The Pan Afrikanist Watchman

The University of Botswana is one of the institutions from Botswana and the rest of the world partaking in the Dubai Expo 2020 under the theme: Connecting Minds, Creating the Future.

With the sub themes of Expo 2020 – Opportunity, Mobility and Sustainability – the University of Botswana is not only actively participating at the mega global event, but also showcasing nine of its cutting-edge research projects and innovations,

Led by Vice Chancellor Prof. David Norris, the mission has as its major objective, to create opportunities for the researchers to collaborate or partner with various global institutions and industry.

Out of the nine research projects, four are displayed physically at the expo while the rest are showcased through various digital media and platforms.

The researches showcased include the Production of biodiesel and by-products using local materials by Professor C. Ketlogetswe of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology; Automated acoustic detector for spotted hyena calls,by Dr Emily Bennitt; Hi-tech GPS collars to study movements of herbivores, by Dr Emily Bennitt of the Okavango Research Institute ORI); and Steroid production from fungi isolated from hypersaline environment for biotechnological applications, by Dr. Daniel Loeto, Faculty of Science.

The others are: Vaccine development for Lumpy Skin Disease in Cattle, and Rapid diagnostic test kit for detection of Lumpy Skin Disease in cattle, by Professor S. Wata Mpoloka, Faulty of Science; Innovative solutions for assessment and monitoring of water in Lake Ngami in the lower Okavango Delta, by Dr. Kelebogile Mfundisi, Okavango Research Institute; Pre-surgical planning and medical device fabrication, by Dr. Shathani Nkhwa, Faculty of Medicine and Blood groups approach to HIV/AIDS vaccine development and treatments, by Dr. Modisa Motswaledi, Faculty of Health Sciences.

A spokesperson of the University’s public affairs department told The Pan Afrikanist via a media statement that in addition to showcasing its research and innovations, the University of Botswana has also embarked on a drive to attract investors so that they invest more resources into these research projects and innovations to turn them into viable commercial products.

This is part of realising the new university strategy and its objective of becoming a research intensive institution with societal impact and capacity to solve global challenges.

This year’s World Expo theme resonates with the new University of Botswana strategy of Creating a Future for the Knowledge Generation.

Meanwhile, 193 countries from around the globe are taking part in the Dubai Expo 2020 including multinational companies. Given the history of World Expos in providing a platform for showcasing the greatest innovations that have shaped the world we live in today, Expo 2020 is continuing that tradition with the latest technology from around the globe including the University of Botswana.