Roy Allela has invented smart gloves that convert sign language movements into audio speech. Pic credit: The Engineer
As Africa grows at a fast pace through the use of technology and other digital solutions, the continent continues to produce creative digital developers with great ideas and innovations set to change the future.
Africans are providing local solutions to challenges in various sectors such as healthcare, energy and finance, and these inventions and innovations have been attracting people in the outside world.
Since 2014, the UK’s national academy of engineering (The Royal Academy of Engineering) has been encouraging, celebrating and rewarding innovation and entrepreneurship in sub-Saharan Africa through its Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation.
Now in its fifth year, the Africa Prize encourages ambitious and talented sub-Saharan African engineers from all disciplines to apply their skills to develop scalable solutions to local challenges, highlighting the importance of engineering as an enabler of improved quality of life and economic development, says its website.
Support is awarded to a shortlist of innovative applicants through an eight-month period of training and mentoring. The Royal Academy of Engineering has since announced the 16 African startups that have been shortlisted for the 2019 edition.
After seven months’ mentoring and training, four finalists will be selected from the shortlist. In June 2019, the finalists will present their businesses to judges in front of a live audience in Kampala, Uganda’s capital.
The overall winner will receive £25 000 (or local currency equivalent) and three runners-up will also receive a cash prize of £10 000 each.
Here are some of the most fascinating innovative creations among the 16 applicants shortlisted for this year:
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