The North-West University (NWU), Community Venture Capital (Pty) Ltd (CVC), and NWU Enterprises (Pty) Ltd (NWUE) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Friday, 7 August to strengthen collaboration in agricultural development and community empowerment.  

The MoU, which aims to establish a strategic framework focused on agriculture financing, market access, logistics optimisations and business empowerment in South Africa and across the African region. 

In addition, the MoU aims to promote inclusive economic growth, strengthen food security and develop sustainable agricultural value chains while empowering smallholder farmers, rural enterprises and local cooperatives. 

The objectives of the MoU are as follows: 

• Agricultural financing: Developing innovative and accessible financing solutions to support smallholder farmers and emerging agribusinesses, and to mobilise investment capital through blended finance models, public-private partnerships and institutional funding.

• Access to market:  Facilitating the entry of community-based producers and cooperatives into the mainstream supplier value chain while supporting product aggregation, certification and quality assurance to meet retail and export standards.

• Logistics and supply chain optimisation: By collaborating on cost-effective logistics, warehousing cold chain solutions to enhance farm-to-market delivery while exploring co-investment opportunities in logistics infrastructure in rural and agricultural hubs.

• Business empowerment and skills development: By implementing enterprise and suppliers’ development programmes, targeting women, young people and rural agricultural entrepreneurs and facilitating technical training, business mentorship and skills transfer in agribusiness management and innovation.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, the NWU chancellor and founder and group chairperson of Community Investment Holdings (CIH), Dr Anna Mokgokong, emphasised that universities should be active partners in the communities they serve. 

Dr Mokgokong said that she has always regarded her role as chancellor as extending beyond ceremonial duties, using her experience to help reinforce the impact of the NWU and contribute meaningfully to the development of North West and beyond. 

Reflecting on the newly established partnership, Dr Mokgokong stressed that its success would be measured by meaningful implementation. 
“These signatures and documents must not gather dust,” she said.

The CEO of CIH Venture Capital, Phenyo Mogamisi, said this collaboration was driven by the need to better align funding, research and commercialisation to strengthen food security and economic participation by academia and communities.

“We recognised a need to unlock funding and commercialisation in agriculture to advance food security in North West and Gauteng. Through this partnership, the university will lead research, skills development and quality assurance, while NWU Enterprises will drive project preparation, management and market access. CIH will support the partnership by mobilising private sector funding, strengthening logistics, agro-processing capacity and ensuring agricultural products reach the market.”

Echoing these sentiments, CEO of NWU Enterprises, Duncan Raftesath, said this partnership will ensure that academic expertise is applied to real-world challenges. 

“Through NWU Enterprises, we will bring research, training, consulting and project management together to deliver practical solutions that create value for industry and society.”

Prof. Bismark Tyobeka, principal and vice-chancellor of the NWU, highlighted the potential of the partnership to create meaningful opportunities for students, researchers and academic staff by linking teaching and research with practical industry engagement. 

“Our farms will become laboratories where students gain practical experience while contributing to agricultural innovation. Undergraduate students will develop hands-on skills, while postgraduate researchers will explore ways to improve crop resilience, increase yields and advance smart, water-efficient farming. At the same time, these opportunities will empower students to become entrepreneurs, support emerging farmers and contribute to the growth of rural communities.”

This partnership expands far beyond agriculture. It will also focus on core social investments that are key to the economy like water and sanitation, energy, healthcare, housing, digitisation, logistics, mining and engineering,  tourism and any other sector that contributes to poverty alleviation and improves economic participation for students and communities.

Industry partners and government institutions that were present included: Sanlam, ABSA, IDC, Gauteng Growth and Development Agency and Gauteng Enterprise Propeller.

Signing the MoU are Phenyo Mogamisi, CEO of CIH Venture Capital, Prof. Bismark Tyobeka, NWU principal and vice-chancellor, Dr Anna Mokgokong, NWU chancellor and founder and group chairperson of Community Investment Holdings (CIH), and Duncan Raftesath, CEO of NWU Enterprises