US-TZ Tech Challenge to unlock youth talent, boost economic growth

DAR ES SALAAM: THE government is optimistic about the US-Tanzania Tech Challenge that aims to unlock youth-led, solution-based innovations that will create jobs and accelerate economic growth in East Africa.

In his remarks on Thursday, the Minister for Information, Communication and Information Technology, Mr Jerry Silaa, said the challenge is crucial for nurturing Tanzanian tech inventors who can leverage their talents to employ themselves and others.

Hosted by the United States Embassy in Tanzania, the US-Tanzania Tech Challenge is described by Mr Silaa as a transformative event that empowers youth to create job opportunities.

“We are excited to see young people who majored in Information Technology (IT), computer science and software engineering employing themselves.

“The challenge also provides a platform for all creative youth to showcase their technologies, which can benefit their communities and the nation as a whole,” he said.

The challenge, which involved over 100 participants, culminated in selection of eight finalist innovators who presented their technologies to a panel of judges from both the US and Tanzania on September 18, this year.

Mr Silaa said the winners were scheduled to be awarded a total of 250,000 US dollar (about 681m/-) as seed capital for developing individuals’ innovation to most impactful scale.

Furthermore, Mr Silaa said he was confident that innovations could address societal challenges in areas of health, communication and finance, among others, by increasing efficiency.

In that regard, he said the government will continue to strengthen Information Communication Technology’s (ICT) infrastructure, including the National ICT Broadband Backbone (NICBB) to support youth’s innovations in the digital era.

Deputy Chief of Mission of the US Embassy in Tanzania, Mr Andrew Lentz, said he was impressed with Tanzanian youth for their huge turnout in the challenge, something which signified their readiness to tap digital opportunities.

Mr Lentz noted that the US-Tanzania Tech Challenge surpassed other similar events in other countries in term of the number of applications from the youth who wanted to compete.

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The challenge was launched in June this year, to uncover innovative solutions, information integrity, fostering greater participation in civic activities, strengthen the skills necessary to navigate and interpret information in the digital era.

Meanwhile, three organisations -Jamiii Forums, Smart Foundry Ltd and The Launchpad Tanzania were yesterday named the winners of the US-Tanzania Tech Challenge, which brought together leading technologists, government officials, civil society, academia and media professionals, to address critical challenges and explore innovative solutions in the realms of civic participation, media literacy and information integrity.

Through the programme, Jamii Forums will receive 100,000 US dollar (about 272m/-) Smart Foundry will receive 80,000 US dollar (about 217m/-) and The Launchpad will receive 70,000 US dollar (about 190m/-)