Three Namibian universities will lead the second Regional University Forum (RUFORUM) Triennial Conference that will tackle Agricultural Education and Research Ecosystems.

The conference, which will attract more than 1,000 delegates from across the world, starts on Monday.

The University of Namibia (UNAM), the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST), and the International University of Management (IUM) are hosting the RUFORUM.

The five-day conference will bring together policymakers, including ministers and technical experts, higher education leaders in Africa, development partners, private sector leaders, researchers, innovators, students, and farmer organisations.

At a media conference in Windhoek, the organisers said the conference will be a platform to examine ways of food production and security, while research in agriculture will be prioritised and ways to alleviate hunger on the continent through agriculture will also be investigated.

"We shift from region to region, so this meeting comes here, and it is going to premiere a lot on challenges within the subject regions. As you are aware, this region has had a lot of climate heat. There has been crop failure in many countries. In this meeting, we are going to bring together many partners," said Patrick Okori, the Executive Secretary for the RUFORUM.

The conference will include high-level policy dialogues, scientific conferences, presentations of research papers on agriculture, capacity-building sessions, and exhibitions from the universities.

Lovisa Immanuel is the General Manager for Innovation and Technology at the National Commission on Research Science and Technology (NCRST). She explained that "the NCRST strongly believes that there are great opportunities in this conference as it will contribute to those goals of hunger reduction, achieving food security, improving nutrition, and promoting sustainable agriculture."

The Ministry of Higher Education, Technology, and Innovation and the Ministry of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform are financially and technically supporting the conference.

RUFORUM has a membership of 170 universities and meets to assess progress and draw lessons across different sectors of Africa's economy together with policy, industry, and development partners.