Abstract
Two of the main challenges facing engineering ecosystems in Africa are 1) enabling
universities to produce more high-quality research, and 2) creating more linkages between
universities and industry to ensure that research is used, and that highly skilled workers have
appropriate knowledge and training. But how can we understand knowledge-focused linkages
between universities and industry in relation to other capacities and capacity building efforts
within engineering systems? What are the challenges and benefits of building these linkages,
and what processes and practices lead to lasting partnerships? We address these questions for
the case of computing and information technology in Kenya. Our analysis comes from a threeyear
project which created and evaluated industrial studentship and fellowship programmes
that involved partnerships with companies. University–industry linkages can be understood as
an aspect of institutional capacity: a concept that refers to a range of capabilities – important
across engineering ecosystems, but especially for universities – that enables production of
high-quality and locally relevant research and contributes to the professional development of
graduates. Other interrelated aspects of institutional capacity include mechanisms to support
acquisition of funding; norms of mentorship, peer support, and scholarly communication; and
structures that enable researchers to balance research and teaching. Our data reveal that while
some of these capabilities are weak or missing in the Kenyan computing ecosystem,
intermediary organisations can act as knowledge brokers to build linkages and facilitate
learning between universities and industry. However, these linkages must be built alongside
other dimensions of institutional capacity, especially social components like mentorship and
peer-to-peer learning.