The UNIICo-Create project, launched between March 24th to 28th, 2025 in Johannesburg, aims at redefining university-industry collaboration in the Southern African Development Community (SADC). An Erasmus+ Capacity Building project for higher education, the initiative represents a significant effort to embed entrepreneurship into the very fabric of higher education institutions across SADC, modernize curricula, foster innovation, and create more employable and entrepreneurial graduates. OBREAL was honored to collaborate with its member THENSA in the development of the project, the continuation of a fruitful collaboration under the HERESA project that concluded in 2023. The Kick-Off Meeting brought together a dynamic consortium of partners dedicated to enhancing entrepreneurial ecosystems, including OBREAL members SARUA, Stellenbosch University, TAMK and University of Montpellier.  

As co-coordinator and strategic partner, OBREAL has provided its extensive experience in knowledge-sharing, policy dialogue platform, and institutional capacity building efforts to the discussions. OBREAL has also co-led the sessions on project management, financial planning, and monitoring & evaluation (M&E).

Key Highlights from the Kick-Off Meeting

  • Defining Priorities – THENSA, OBREAL, and SARUA led discussions on university-industry collaboration, including a SWOT analysis and stakeholder mapping.
  • Co-Creation Units in Universities – NUST and Stellenbosch spearheaded efforts to integrate Co-Creation Units (CCUs) into Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) to foster innovation.
  • Curriculum Modernization – OBREAL, SARUA, and Stellenbosch presented plans to  collaborate on embedding entrepreneurship education and strengthening cross-regional academic cooperation.
  • Digital Learning & Virtual Exchange – OBREAL emphasized online models to broaden access to entrepreneurship education and enhance international peer learning.
  • Ensuring Long-Term Impact – THENSA and OBREAL guided discussions on monitoring, evaluation, and sustainability strategies to drive long-lasting institutional transformation.

The Kick-Off Meeting was more than just a launch event—it was a collective commitment to reshaping the way universities engage with industry and society in the SADC region. With THENSA providing strategic leadership, OBREAL is proud to serve as a bridge between regions, facilitating knowledge exchange and policy alignment. It will also support THENSA in the management of this ambitious initiative that also involves ministries of higher education in the partner countries.

OBREAL remains dedicated to ensuring that the UNIICo-Create project leads to systemic, sustainable change—creating entrepreneurial universities that are truly agents of economic transformation in SADC.

This project is aimed at creating a major structural impact in the SADC region and therefore involves the Ministries of Lesotho, Eswatini, Namibia and South Africa and agencies involved in higher education policy in these countries.

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