The Vice- Chancellor said this on Monday, 11 August, 2025 during the opening of the 2025 MUBAS Research and Innovation Week at the university’s main campus in Blantyre. 

She said as a research-intensive institution, the university has set up different units to support research, innovations and entrepreneurship.

“The research and innovation week is helping us to build a strong culture of research, entrepreneurship and innovation within our community. Through this event, we are also creating an ecosystem involving the academia, the industry and the community,’’ she said.

Chitera added that research should go beyond the confines of lecture rooms and academic papers, and offer tangible solutions to communities.

“For a long time, professors and other members of the academia have done research and published papers, but now is the time to use those research papers and findings to offer solutions to the myriad problems that our people are facing,’’ she added.

Delivering her keynote address during the event, Director of Enterprise and Innovations at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Dr. Becky Jones-Phillips, said that one of the challenges in research is that technologies and innovations tend to grow so fast along the innovation pathway, yet stall when the research environment ends. 

“We need to nurture and support new technologies and make sure that the innovation journeys continue so that the final products should reach the market,’’ said Jones-Phillips

This year’s event which was held under the theme “Research and Innovation: Driving Sustainable Growth for an Inclusive and Entrepreneurial Malawi,” attracted various organizations and individuals who showcased their innovations and shared their research papers. 

There were also specific sessions on women in innovation and entrepreneurship.  

The event was financially supported by different organisations such as FDH Bank, Sky Energy Africa, Sauti and Company Law Consultants, and Standard Bank.

During the closing ceremony, outstanding researchers and innovators received awards. The Best Student Researcher award went to Malik Abubakari who is studying mechanical engineering at MUBAS and the Best Early Career Researcher for staff went to Taonga Mwapasa of the Centre for Water, Sanitation, Health and Appropriate Technology Development (WASHTED)