Imagine a busy market day in Lilongwe complete with the sweet-smelling grilled tilapia, lively banter and a quiet researcher watching it all unfold.
Well, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (Luanar) final-year student Aubrey Nkhoma will not be there to shop, but to gauge if consumers have embraced fish fed on insect-based feed?
The fish under study are awaiting harvesting at Luanar, but the science is not just about nutrition or cost, but public trust and perception of new innovation.
For Nkhoma, the experiment seeks to answer a question being asked across Africa: How do we make research matter?
The question dominated the talks by scholars, policymakers and private sector captains at the Alliance for African Partnership (AAP) symposium hosted at Luanar in Lilongwe.
Knowledge produced by African universities often gathers dust in shelves instead of driving change in the communities where it is generated.
“Over 60 percent of our research output remains locked in journals and archives,” laments Professor David Norris, vice-chancellor of the University of Botswana. “That’s billions of dollars in lost opportuni-ty. We cannot continue to operate as ivory towers.”
Norris calls for a radical shift a fourth-generation university where innovation does not end with dis-sertations and peer-reviewed journals, but beget co-created, real-life solutions with communities.
“Many of our students and academics are producing research that no policymaker or farmer will ever use. That’s not just inefficient. It’s a tragedy,” says African Network of Agricultural Policy Research Institute executive director Anthony Chapoto.
That is where Nkhoma’s work comes handy.
By exploring consumer perceptions of fish nourished with black soldier flies which is more affordable than traditional fish feed Nkhoma is challenging attitudes, probing market realities and potentially unlocking a path to more profitable and environment-friendly aquaculture.
“If consumers accept this fish, it could change everything. Farmers wouldn’t need to depend on ex-pensive feeds anymore. We could upscale larvae production, cut costs and boost food security,” he says.
Luanar promotes demand-driven research, according to Vice-Chancellor Professor Emmanuel Kaunda. The innovations include a fish marketing app co-developed with industry partners and live-stock insurance to be piloted through the university’s Chiweto Limited in collaboration with Nico General.
“These are not abstract ideas,” Kaunda notes. “They’re solutions rooted in community needs and co-designed with students [like Nkhoma].”
He urges researchers to improve how they communicate their findings with ordinary minds.
“We’re great at generating data, but terrible at making it accessible. Scholars and policymakers don’t need to use technical jargon. Farmers need practical steps. Journalists need compelling stories,” says.Kaunda.
Part of the problem lies in how research is taught and evaluated. Success is still often defined by aca-demic publication rather than community uptake or impact.
To bridge this disconnect, Chapoto’s team is training researchers to collaborate with media and policy actors in translating knowledge into action.
This ethos of mutual learning and equitable partnership is at the heart of AAP’s work. Unlike older, extractive models of research where knowledge flowed one way from foreign experts to African communities, AAP emphasises co-creation.
“We don’t want to be passive recipients,” Kaunda asserts. “We want to set our own priorities and build our own solutions.”
However, funding remains a challenge.
“He who pays the piper calls the tune,” Norris insists. “If we want African research to solve African problems, then African governments and businesses must invest in it.”
Malawi 2063 envisions the country becoming an inclusively wealthy and self-reliant middle-income economy driven by knowledge, technology and innovation by the centenary of self-rule.
However, this will remain aspirational if universities cannot transform their ground-breaking research into life-changing solutions for the nation.
As the research talks came to a close, Nkhoma returned to his focus group with a renewed sense of purpose.
His findings so far are encouraging: fish farmers do not care what the fish eat. All they need is fish, the cheapest protein which has become scarce as catches in open waters fall.
From larvae to livelihoods, his journey captures a growing awakening: Africa’s research no longer be-longs in dusty shelves, but the people.
“It’s not about the larvae,” Nkhoma smiles. “It’s about trust, information, and showing people that good science can
