Arba Minch University, putting its best foot forward with holistically professional packages has launched new University-Industry and Technology Transfer Linkage Directorate that stands to reassuringly make it highly sought-after ‘seat of learning’ that essentially assures jobs as well.

Following is the full text of interview with Research and Community Service Vice President, Dr Guchie Gulie, whom this directorate is accountable to in discharging its overall activities.
On reason to launch this directorate, Dr Guchie, said, ‘‘This new directorate with its three dimensions will address the substantive issues of teaching-learning, widening of coordination and technology transfer at university. It will plan, organize, lead and facilitate technology transfer activities and also initiate collaboration with micro, small, medium and the large industries which can work with the university.’’
This directorate has been established to enhance and strengthen the practical education for students to enable them to carry out responsibilities within the industries.
Apart from adding three dimensions to university, it will link research needs of the industries with university staff which will complement industry’s demand. It will identify problems dogging industry and address those issues by building staff’s capacity. It will utilize the limited resources of its own and industry to achieve the common goal.
Vice President further adds, it will coordinate students’ internship and service learning process to be accomplished in association with industries. Students will be taught how to work and acquire skill of technical knowhow there.
In the sphere of technology transfer, AMU which is aspiring to learn new technologies which are already created and appropriate to be adopted in the country and to create new appropriate technologies by itself. Therefore, learning apt technologies and transferring them to community and industries will be its important responsibility.
To widen collaboration, AMU will identify and sign pact with potential micro, small, medium and the large industries which will work with our colleges. Hence, this directorate will identify the partners, enhance relationship and widen the scope. 
Stating directorate’s responsibilities, he said, it will plan, organize, lead, manage and control the activities of linkage and technology transfer. It will also develop and recommend policies and administrative procedures for technology transfer, intellectual property administration, students’ service learning etc.
It will follow up the proper implementation of the practical courses, rules and facilitate the courses of the incubation and transfer of adoptable technologies. It will prioritize the incubation activities and oversee its implementation.
It will also build staff capacity, guide and facilitate the organization and documentation of knowledge and innovation generated by each program for the dissemination, technology commercialization, rendering patent right and its outright sale and to charter coordination duties.
On employability aspect, he said, enhancing the quality of practical education is imperative; specially, practical courses demanded by industries will be revisited. This directorate will take students’ internship to the expected level where they will assimilate technical skill to be recruited by most of the industries.
Expressing optimism, Dr Guchie, said AMU is the third university in country for taking such initiative. Regretting industries outsourcing research activities worth millions to other nation, he said, this directorate will link the university to execute those researches within the nation. It will cement university-industry bond that will root out lacuna in technology transfer.

By Corporate Communication Directorate: Philips Joseph