MY REFLECTIONS FROM THE 21ST RUFORUM AGM in BOTSWANA
By Chinyelu Irene Nwokolo, University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria
During my first degree, some persons asked, “Why agriculture when your friends are chasing engineering or medicine?”, this story is just the perfect answer.
For the past two (2) weeks I’ve been living in a whirlwind of meetings, discoveries, and connections at the 21st RUFORUM Annual General Meeting (AGM), held at the Gaborone International Conference Centre (GICC) from 24th November to 5 th December 2025.
It wasn’t just an AGM, it was a living classroom, a reminder that agriculture is a lifestyle, not a checkbox.
“If you don’t own your narrative, nobody will do it for you” – Annette Mutuku, Director, Program Communications – Higher Education, Collaboratives and Strategic Initiatives at Mastercard Foundation. Those words kept echoing every time I walked through the halls (Moremi 1 and 2, Tsodilo Suite etc.), and echoed harder as I witnessed a young medical doctor presenting Agri-innovations.
Seeing the Future Under Solar Panels: During the Pre-AGM field trip to Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (BUAN), I stood beneath a solar farm where panels shade rows of crops. The sight hit me. Renewable energy feeding fields – a tangible answer to climate smart agriculture!
IncuHive – where alumni become Argo-entrepreneurs: I met alumni who turned poultry projects into thriving sustainable enterprises. Their stories of grit, failure, and triumph reminded me that innovation isn’t just tech, it’s people daring to dream beyond the laboratories and classrooms.
Water That Gives Life: Walking through the BUAN Water Treatment Plant, I watched crystal clear water flow back to the campus and nearby communities. The Plant manager explained every filtration step with pride, and I felt a surge of gratitude. Water security is agriculture security.
Safflower Fields: The Safflower farm showed me petals turning into dye, seeds pressed into oil, and residues turned into animal feed – a whole value chain! It was a visual symphony of circular economy, and I realized how a single crop can feed and sustain families, cloth artisans, and nurture livestock.
My Role as a Communication focal person: As a Communication Officer under the Transforming African Agricultural Universities to Meaningfully Contribute to Africa’s Growth and Development T(AGDev) 2.0 program at the University of Port Harcourt (UniPort), I was a rapporteur at the ‘Communication for Impact workshop’ on 3rd December 2025. Capturing those moments, I felt the weight of every word – documenting stories that can shift policy, funding, and mindsets. In the breakout sessions, I presented findings from our group, hearing applause not for me, but for the collective resolve we all share.
If we as Africans don’t own our food narrative, who will?
I am ready to carry these stories, amplify the voices of innovators, and keep communicating agri-food systems for impact.
Thank you RUFORUM, Government of Botswana, BUAN, UniPort, Prof. Owunari Georgewill, Prof. Ibisime Etela, my fellow delegates, and every young scientist daring to rewrite the script of food security in Africa.
