MMUST’s Four Student Innovations Advance to the National Phase of the NEIL Campus Spark Challenge
Four (4) student innovations from Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology have qualified to compete in the upcoming national phase of the Campus Spark Student Innovation Challenge, slated for September 2026 in Mombasa. This comes after a highly competitive intra-university challenge, which saw thirty (30) innovation teams showcase their groundbreaking ideas across four categories. This challenge took place on 29th July, 2026 and was coordinated by the Directorate of Science Park, Innovation and Incubation Centre (SPIIC), in conjunction with the MMUST Innovation Academy.
The innovations advancing to represent MMUST at the national level per category are; Samakilink (Agriculture and Food Security category); AfyaLink (Health and Wellbeing category); FarmPesa (Digital Transformation and AI category); and Ahadi Bloom (Climate Action and Green Innovation category).
The Campus Spark Student Innovation Challenge is a national initiative, spearheaded by the Network of Entrepreneurial Institutions Leaders (NEIL) alongside the Kenya National Innovation Agency (KeNIA). It seeks to nurture student-led innovations by transforming promising ideas into practical, scalable solutions that address pressing societal challenges.
Notably, a total of 46 innovation teams competed, with 30 selected to advance to the intra-university challenge. According to the Director-SPIIC, Dr. Tecla Sum, all the competing teams did exceptionally well. “While NEIL will support the top four student startups, my Directorate as well as the University Management commits to incubate the remaining innovations through to commercialization. We are immensely proud of all our innovators, who continue to position MMUST as the cradle of innovation in Africa,” says Dr. Sum.
We wish the student innovators all the best as they prepare to represent the University on the national stage. Their success highlights the remarkable talent, creativity, and dedication within our student body, and there is no doubt that their impactful solutions will make MMUST proud in the highly-anticipated challenge.
By Wangari Wambugu
