Determinants of sustainable university-industry linkages in Ethiopian public universities

This study examined the determinants that predict the performance of university-industry linkages (UIL), operationalized as depth and sustainability, in Ethiopian public science and technology universities. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey design was used, and data were collected from 344 academic staff across four universities. The analysis employed a validated measurement model and multiple regression to examine the association of geographic proximity (GP), institutional coordination and individual champions (IC&IC), and government support (GS) with UIL depth and sustainability (DS). The regression results show that all three determinants significantly predict DS. GP had the strongest association (β = 0.294, p < .001), followed by IC&IC (β = 0.257, p < .001), and GS (β = 0.199, p = .001). The model explained a substantial proportion of variance in DS ( R = .60, Adjusted R² = 0.350, F(3, 340) = 62.60, p < .001), indicating that spatial, institutional, and policy factors are jointly associated with UIL performance. The study contributes to UIL theory by illustrating how Triple Helix interactions and absorptive capacity mechanisms operate in an emerging UIL system. The findings offer a context-specific framework for enhancing UIL sustainability in Ethiopia.