By Jessica Dogo
The National Director of National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR), Dr Olubunmi Ajala, says that the Hack4Livestock Hackathon winners will get support for startups and international exposure.
Ajala said this at the just concluded four-day Hack4Livestock Hackathon competition on Thursday in Abuja.
The programme was organised by the NCAIR in conjunction with the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy and Ministry of Livestock Development.
Ajala said that the winners would present their ideas at a conference in July, at the University of Florida, providing invaluable international exposure.
He said that the three top winners would also receive incubation, funding, and intellectual property protection through Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation (ONDI).
“For the three top winners, a comprehensive support system awaits.
“They will receive incubation, funding, and intellectual property protection through ONDI, a special purpose vehicle of NITDA that is responsible for managing and handling startups.
“ONDI will provide end-to-end support, including incubation, capacity development, funding and Intellectual Property (IP) protection, ensuring that these promising ventures have everything they need to thrive.”
He said that an exhibition showcasing a wide array of solutions underscores the immense capabilities of Nigerian innovators.
Ajala expressed immense pride in the ingenuity displayed by Nigerian innovators.
“What I could see today is actually a validation of what Nigerians could do.
“Solutions ranging from solving issues of mass conflict, improving productivity, and leveraging artificial intelligence, IoT, and UAVs. This is a wide range of solutions that have been proposed’” he said.
He recognised the immense talent within the broader pool of participants and assured that even those who were not among the top winners would receive crucial support.
Mr Oldejo Olawumi, Director, IT Infrastructure Solutions, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), said that the products and services developed by the youths had the potential to go global.
“The service and the product they develop today can go anywhere in the world. If they are encouraged, the sky is the limit.
“We are bringing down the commercial value in what they are doing by exposing them to the outside world,” he said.
He said that NITDA had supported similar hackathons in the past, with Nigerian youths winning awards at international events like the GITEX event in Dubai.
He commended the organisers of the programme for providing a platform for Nigerian youths to showcase their creative talents in tech innovation.
Divine Idokoh, an innovator of Livestocx, who came third, expressed optimism that their innovation would go a long way to help farmers, especially in the area of selling directly to buyers.
Idokoh said that the Livestock group created a digital marketplace platform that connects livestock sellers directly to consumers.
She thanked the organisers for the opportunity given to innovators to come together and explore various ideas to reality.
The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani had promised the top three winners out of ten groups of the Hack4Livestock Hackathon programme N10 million.
The winners include: Livestocx, who came third with a sum of N2 million, JVincent came second with a sum of N3 million and Agro Alliance came first with a sum of N5 million accordingly.
Stakeholders from the Ministry of Livestoc Developmen and National Board for Technical Education (MBTE) were in attendance among others.
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