Home Blog Page 45

We are learning, innovating, and hope to win – 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon participants

Nicholas L Ntulume
-
0
We are learning, innovating, and hope to win – 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon participants

Our Reporter.

With the 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon underway, participants are thrilled and full of hope that they will at the end of it be better people; ready to transform the world through financial technology innovations.

They attribute this to the detailed daily program designed by the organizers that mixes learning technology, developing solutions, and improving personal skills.

Winfred Nandawula, the Team Leader of Tawaza Initiative notes that the Hackathon is helping them breakdown huge concepts into realistic and achievable products.

“One of the biggest issues that has been out there is that innovators have so many things that are going on and have a wide scope of things they are dealing in. But today we are here to learn that you can scale down a problem into something narrower and more achievable. Most of the teams are here to win, learn, innovate and solve community problems,” Nandawula noted.

Now in its third edition, the Women in FinTech Hackathon is part of HiPipo’s commitment towards empowering women with the required digital and financial inclusion skills so that they can go out there; innovate, prosper, earn and develop their families and communities.  This year’s edition has gathered 20 Women-led teams of between two to four members each.

Sophie Nabaale, a participant from Team Sueno- Wetase noted that even though she has been at a hackathon before, the Women in FinTech Hackathon is different from the first one she attended as it teaches both innovation and life skills.

“For example, today, we learnt about financial management, which is a key topic for individuals and businesses. We are here to learn all that is there to learn and I expect to win regardless of the tight competition. But even without winning, I am sure that what I will get from here will impact so much on me and my team at large,” Nabaale said.

Day One of the Hackathon saw teams complete their Problem Statements and Business Cases in addition to being introduced to Level One Project principles. They were also mentored on Finance Management by Damali Ssali, the chief programs and projects officer at Private Sector Foundation Uganda, and Personal Growth by Wendy Nanfo, the COO Kuda Bank (Uganda).

Novita Nyirarukundo, a participant from Kisoro District and Team Leader of Land Resources observed that even though this was her first hackathon, the first day surpassed her expectations.

“We have been introduced to the latest financial technology and new ways of innovation. I have been inspired by the different speakers such as Madam Wendy who mentored us on personal growth. I have realized that success and rest do not sleep together. In all, we are learning and competing for the top prize,” she said.

The 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon seeks to close the Gender Gap in Access to Technology, Skills, and Usage of Digital Financial Services. It will provide women innovators and students an opportunity to use digital financial technology to explore business concepts. The hackathon will introduce participants to useful tools and offer an introduction to technologies such as Mojaloop Open-Source Software, and guidance from Level One Project foundational material. The skills gained from this initiative will cover Level One Project Principles, Instant and Inclusive Payment Systems (IIPS), Inclusive Finance, and FinTech in general.

According to Cleopatra Kanyunyuzi, the Project’s Lead Facilitator and also co-founder of Club Tangaza, the Hackathon is key in closing the gender diversity gap that is currently experienced in the technology industry.

“Technology has been around but it is a male-dominated space. So when HiPipo comes up with such a project, it is trying to onboard more women in this space. The women that are being trained here will in the future contribute to not only closing the gender gap but also changing their communities. This is a learning vehicle that is enriching the ladies and giving them a push to venture and actively participate in the Financial Technology industry,” Kanyunyuzi explained. 

The week-long Women in FinTech Hackathon will culminate in the Women in FinTech summit on Friday 16th September at Mestil Hotel, Kampala; where the best performing teams and individuals from across East Africa will be announced and receive their share of the USD 10,000 collective prize money. The best teams will also automatically qualify for the Women in FinTech Incubator program that will run until January 2023.

The Women in FinTech Hackathon, Summit, and Incubator project is presented by HiPipo in partnership with Level One Project, Mojaloop, ModusBox, CyberPLC Academy, and Crosslake Technologies and generously supported by Gates Foundation.

#LevelOneProject: 20 Teams make final shortlist for 2022 #WomenInFinTech Hackathon

Nicholas L Ntulume
-
0
#LevelOneProject: 20 Teams make final shortlist for 2022 #WomenInFinTech Hackathon

Kampala, Uganda. Following the completion of both entry submission and review process, we are excited to unveil the 20 teams that are going to take part in the 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon, scheduled for 10th to 15th September 2022. The 20 teams have been shortlisted from over 50 submissions received.  

The successful teams will work on FinTech products and solutions in areas such as Agri-Tech, E-Commerce, Payments, Savings and Loans, Edu-Tech, and Fundraising.

“We are happy to introduce this year’s participants. The teams shortlisted come from allover the region including a team from Rwanda and Tanzania. Other teams are traveling from as far as Kisoro. This clearly indicates that the project has continued to grow and is attracting more quality. We have had pre-hackathon discussions with all the team leaders and can confirm that they are all ready to innovate, and transform their communities,” Charlotte Neeza, the HiPipo FinTechs Events Manager explained, she added;

“This announcement sets the stage and puts the Hackathon wheels into motion. On our side, we are set to receive all participants, starting Saturday 7am. Those traveling from far are set to arrive on Friday.”  

Now in its third edition, the Women in FinTech Hackathon is part of HiPipo’s commitment towards empowering women with the required digital and financial inclusion skills so that they can go out there; innovate, prosper, earn and develop their families and communities. 

The 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon seeks to close the Gender Gap in Access to Technology, Skills, and Usage of Digital Financial Services. It will provide women innovators and students an opportunity to use digital financial technology to explore business concepts. The hackathon will introduce participants to useful tools and offer an introduction to technologies such as Mojaloop Open-Source Software, and guidance from Level One Project foundational material. The skills gained from this initiative will cover Level One Project Principles, Instant and Inclusive Payment Systems (IIPS), Inclusive Finance, and FinTech in general.

“Our ultimate objective is to help achieve a leveled playing field by guiding the African continent into fully maximizing its digital dividend and potential, with the entire populace equitably participating in the use, leverage, dissemination, innovation, adoption, and adaptation of secure digital financial services to improve their lives and livelihoods,” Innocent Kawooya, the HiPipo CEO noted.

The Women in FinTech Hackathon will culminate into the Women in FinTech summit on Friday 16th of September, where the best performing teams and individuals from across East Africa will be announced and receive their share of the USD 10,000 collective prize money. The best teams will also automatically qualify for the Women in FinTech Incubator program that will run until January 2023.

The Women in FinTech Hackathon, Summit, and Incubator project is presented by HiPipo in partnership with Level One Project, Mojaloop, ModusBox, CyberPLC Academy, and Crosslake Technologies and generously supported by Gates Foundation.

In case of any queries, reach out via socialweb@HiPipo.com

NOTEAM NAMETEAM LEADER
1HERDUUKATABITHA ATWIINE
2FUNA HOUSE PROPERTY MATERSKIYIGA MARION OLIVEA
3TAWAZA DIGITAL VARIETIESWINFRED NANDAWULA
4LANDS RESOURCENOVITA NYIRARUKUNDO
5OLIWAA EVENTSZAHARA NAMWANJE
6LIMA PESAMARIA VIVIAN AWORI
7JIBUNAKISOZI MASTULAH SARAH
8ACADEMIC PERSONAL ASSISTANT (APA)DIANA NAJJUMA
9THE PLATTERNAMULWA PATRA HIGENYI
10RENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM(RMS)AMASE STISHA MARGRET
11SAYL KAREVICTORIA NAKITTO
12E-SERVICEJOSEPHINE NANKUNDA
13INSURE WALLETEVELYNE NAKANWAGI
14THE FINTECH DEVOTEETUSIIME EMILY QUEEN
15TEGEKA INVESTMENT CLUBSHAMIM NAKAYIZA
16GO GREENMARIAM HAVILLAH MIREMBE
17AUTOPAYBETTY HAPPY
18ELEVATIONRACHEAL IPERU
19HER ICT SKILLSMUKAYIRANGA JANE
20IZERE EDUCATIONSHAMIM NIRERE

Ends.

2022 HiPipo Music Awards Nominations Open

Nicholas L Ntulume
-
0
2022 HiPipo Music Awards Nominations Open

The much-awaited 11th Edition of the annual HiPipo Music Awards is upon us. On 18th November 2022, at Kampala Serena Hotel, there will be celebration and enjoyment that will go down in the ages as some of the best ever!

HiPipo remains one of Uganda’s and indeed Africa’s most dynamic organisations, a brand whose innovations and initiatives are increasingly renowned for their positive impact on livelihoods and communities.

Our annual HiPipo Music Awards are recognised not just for the critical acclaim and prestige they bestow on their winners and nominees, but, as of now, their longevity as well.

HiPipo is proud to keep going from strength-to-strength; we have learnt a lot over time, starting from the first awards event, which was an online virtual experience, held in May 2012.

We keep refining and redefining our processes, and thus how we nominate, vote and select winners is continually fine-tuned. This is because we never forget that it is music fans/supporters’ right to make choice of and nominate, the proverbial crème de la crème.

And so, here is your chance to nominate your best acts and artists for the 11th HiPipo Music Awards. Nominations close on Sunday 2nd October.

AFRICA

  1. Africa Number 1
  2. Africa Best Act

EAST AFRICA

  • East Africa Super Hit
  • East Africa Super Video

UGANDA

  • Artist of The Year
  • Song of the Year
  • Video of the Year
  • Breakthrough Artist
  • Digital Music Queen of the Year
  • Best Regional Song
  • Most Viral Song
  • Lifetime Achievement Award

2022 Digital Impact Awards Africa Open for Nominations

Nicholas L Ntulume
-
0
2022 Digital Impact Awards Africa Open for Nominations

Following the consecutive eight seasons of Digital Impact Awards Africa, we are glad to announce that entry submissions for the 2022 edition are open.

Digital Impact Awards Africa is a platform that promotes Digital Inclusion, Financial Inclusion, and Cyber Security. The Awards recognize and celebrate stakeholders that are spearheading the use of digital mediums to serve communities.

The Digital Impact Awards Africa celebrates digital excellence across the continent, big or small, local or international.

The 9th edition is slated for 18th November 2022 at Kampala Serena Hotel as part of the annual Digital and Financial Inclusion summit.

The summit explores strategic trends and technologies that are shaping the future of Digital, ICTs, and Business. Special attention is paid to the safety of customers’ funds and the security of platforms in the Digital Financial Services ecosystem. 

This year’s summit will bring together C-Level executives that are spearheading the scaling, adoption, and usage of digital and financial services across Africa. The summit will discuss the disruptive impact of COVID-19 on the business ecosystem and what players are doing to recover.

Speakers will come from multinationals, large enterprises, small and mid-sized enterprises, and start-ups. Additionally, the summit will offer a platform for informal businesses (like market vendors, smallholder farmers, sole proprietors, public transporters, e-commerce delivery agents, etc.)   

The summit and awards are using these 3 official tags; #IncludeEveryone #DIAA2022 #LevelOneProject. 

Now is the time for you to nominate your best service provider, products, and brands: Just visit https://bit.ly/3KvUEZn  

Here is the full list of categories open for nomination. 

  1. Financial Inclusion Excellence
  2. Digital Banking Excellence
  3. Banking Innovation Excellence
  4. Community/MFI Banking Innovation Excellence
  5. FinTech Innovation Excellence
  6. Financial Services Digital Excellence
  7. Consumer Goods Digital Excellence
  8. Utilities and Government Services Digital Excellence
  9. Technology Services Digital Excellence 
  10. Digital Campaign Excellence 
  11. Digital Brand of the Year

TradeMark East Africa Announces New Chief Executive Officer

Nicholas L Ntulume
-
0
TradeMark East Africa Announces New Chief Executive Officer

Senior diplomat and development professional, former United Kingdom High Commissioner, adviser at World Bank and IMF boards to lead one of the world’s largest Aid for Trade institutions

Mr. David Beer has been appointed the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for TradeMark East Africa (TMEA) and succeeds Mr. Frank Matsaert, TMEA’s founding CEO. He will assume the position from 1st September 2022 and will be based in Nairobi, TMEA’s headquarters. 

David Beer has recently completed his tour as High Commissioner for the United Kingdom (UK) in Malawi. 

The TMEA Board conducted a rigorous selection process to select a CEO with strong experience of the nexus of aid for trade, Governments and diplomacy, multilaterals, and development, positioning him to provide continuity of purpose.  Mr. Beer has over 20 years’ senior international experience within these sectors. He previously represented the UK, advising respective UK Executive Directors to the Boards of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund on areas such as institutional risk management, adaptive programming and disaster risk financing, alongside macro-economic management and development programming. This builds on many years of leading development efforts for the British Government and other organisations across Africa, including Uganda, Sudan, Burundi, and Ghana.

Mr. Beer joins TMEA at a time when the organisation is expanding to the rest of Africa and scaling up support for the implementation of Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement. TMEA has innovated its programming to not only reduce trade barriers through improved transportation systems, digitalisation of key trade processes, and targeted interventions supporting Small and Medium Enterprises in critical sectors; but also developing a US$220 million Green Corridors programme that will ensure climate resilient infrastructure and transport models are adopted. Additionally, TMEA has secured funding to start up its new commercial arm – Trade Catalyst Africa – that will catalyse commercial capital into the organisation’s infrastructure and digital workstreams.  

As founding CEO of TMEA, Mr. Frank Matsaert has led the institution for more than a decade through periods of momentous growth, strong delivery, and external challenges. The most recent being the COVID-19 pandemic which inflicted a global recession and in response TMEA created its awardwinning Safe Trade programme that helped mitigate the impact of the pandemic on Eastern African trade. Mr. Matsaert spearheaded expansion beyond East Africa to now include the Horn, Southern and West Africa, and raising TMEA funding from an initial US$42 million to US$1.2 billion by April this year. Mr. Matsaert has worked tirelessly to develop TMEA’s strategy and implementation model to achieve large-scale impact; champion staff welfare, inclusion, and diversity; and promote TMEA beyond its traditional donors to now include Foundations. Consequently, David will be inheriting an organisation with an excellent record for achieving results, with a professional and dedicated management team which displays all the values on which TMEA prides itself. 

TMEA Board Chair Ambassador Erastus Mwencha said, “David’s extensive government and trade development skills should help TMEA strengthen its programming, develop strategic alliances, and roll out fit-for-purpose products that respond to market needs at macro and micro level so Africa can maximise its trade potential. We believe his strong leadership experience will help focus TMEA during these turbulent economic times and stabilise its funding base.”

About TradeMark East Africa 

TradeMark (Trade and Markets) East Africa is an aid-for-trade organisation that was established in 2010, with the aim of growing prosperity in East Africa through increased trade. TMEA operates on a not-for-profit basis and is funded by the development agencies of the following countries: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, the European Union, France, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, United Kingdom, and United States of America. TMEA works closely with regional intergovernmental organisations, including the African Union (AU), Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, East Africa Community (EAC), Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA), Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU), National governments, the private sector, and civil society organisations.

TMEA, with an annual expenditure of approx. US$80 million, is now one of the leading aid-for-trade facilities in the world. 

The first phase of TMEA (2010-2017) delivered exceptional results which contributed to substantial gains in East Africa’s trade and regional integration in terms of reduced cargo transit times, improved border efficiency, and reduced barriers to trade.  

The second phase (2017-2024) is focusing on: 

1. Reducing barriers to trade; and 

2. Improving business competitiveness. 

We believe this will deliver large-scale impact in job creation, poverty reduction, and enhanced economic welfare.

TMEA is expanding its operations beyond Eastern and Horn of Africa, innovating its programming, and commercialising some of its initiatives. We are positioned to support the implementation of the AfCFTA in a wider continental context; similarly facilitating a newly developed Green Corridor Approach to reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions along trade and transport corridors. 

TMEA has its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, with offices in EAC-Arusha, Burundi (Bujumbura),

Democratic Republic of Congo (Bukavu), Djibouti (Djibouti), Ethiopia (Addis-Ababa), Somaliland (Hargeisa), Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda (Kigali), South Sudan (Juba), Tanzania (Dar es Salaam), Uganda (Kampala) and Zambia.

To find out more, please visit website www.trademarkea.com  

HiPipo unveils the 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon, Summit, and Incubator; on-boards participants from across East Africa.

Nicholas L Ntulume
-
0
HiPipo unveils the 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon, Summit, and Incubator; on-boards participants from across East Africa.

Kampala, Uganda: When you empower one woman, you have in fact supported an entire family. This is no longer an optimistic opinion but a statement of fact.

This is why HiPipo is keen to empower women with the required digital and financial inclusion skills so that they can go out there; innovate, prosper, earn and develop their families and communities. 

In both 2020 and 2021, HiPipo deliberately and in full adherence to COVID-19 safety protocols implemented the Women in FinTech Hackathon, Summit, and Incubator. The cardinal purpose of these inter-twined initiatives was, and still is, to champion women’s financial inclusion through active participation in the initiation, development, and rolling out of financial technology products that are well tailored to serve women and everyone. And indeed, the HiPipo Women In FinTech initiative is exceptionally supporting efforts toward closing the Gender Gap in Access to Technology, Skills, and Usage of Digital Financial Services.

The impact of these initiatives is out for all to see. More than 100 women have been trained and equipped with the latest FinTech skills, and at least 10 products have been initiated and taken to the market by Women in FinTech participants, in addition to individual participants and teams getting seed capital from both the project and external contributors to further pursue their ideas.

This success is thanks to HiPipo’s thoughtful Women Inclusion efforts and the commitment of its partners: Level One Project, Mojaloop, ModusBox, and Crosslake Technologies. Even so, all this may have remained a good paper concept or a somewhat deferred dream had it not been for the generous support of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

This story is set to continue this year with the Women in Fintech Hackathon and Summit finale slated to run from 10th to 16th September 2022 while the Incubator program will run from late October to the end of January 2023. This year’s edition will be bigger and better with the entry of CyberPLC Academy as a strategic implementation partner.

The 2022 Women in FinTech Hackathon seeks to close the Gender Gap in Access to Technology, Skills, and Usage of Digital Financial Services. It will provide women innovators and students an opportunity to use digital financial technology to explore business concepts. The hackathon will introduce participants to useful tools and offer an introduction to technologies such as Mojaloop Open-Source Software, and guidance from Level One Project foundational material. The skills gained from this initiative will cover Level One Project Principles, Instant and Inclusive Payment Systems (IIPS), Inclusive Finance, and FinTech in general.

“Our ultimate objective is to help achieve a leveled playing field by guiding the African continent into fully maximizing its digital dividend and potential, with the entire populace equitably participating in the use, leverage, dissemination, innovation, adoption, and adaptation of secure digital financial services to improve their lives and livelihoods,” Innocent Kawooya, the HiPipo CEO noted.

On-boarding East Africa participants.

The 2022 edition will kick off with a virtual East African round that will have participants from across the region taken through daily training and assessment for 5 days (29th August to 2nd September), with the top team from each country automatically qualifying for the grand finale to be held in Kampala.

Interested participants from Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, and South Sudan will register for the virtual round between 17th and 26th August while Ugandan participants will submit their entries from 20th to 29th August.

The hackathon is open to women-led teams of 2 to 4 members, with each team having at least 67 percent female composition.

“We are excited about this year’s edition. The past two editions have been highly impactful with different participants being able to take their innovations to the market while others are in the process. The third edition is going to be bigger and better as we welcome East African participants. We are indebted to our partners, and supporters and commit that we shall not stop because financial inclusion is a right for everyone,” Kawooya noted.

The Women in FinTech Hackathon will culminate in the Women in FinTech summit where the best performing teams and individuals from across East Africa will be announced and receive their share of the USD 10,000 collective prize money. This will be in addition to automatically qualifying for the Women in FinTech Incubator program that will run until January 2023.

So ladies; there you have it. Get ready to register, prepare to develop, learn and shine. More details will be shared in due course.

In case of any queries, reach out via socialweb@HiPipo.com

1...444546...260Page 45 of 260
© Newspaper WordPress Theme by TagDiv