Kenyan techies face off with global peers in Sh25m Internet contest

Mobile money transfer: The World Bank’s research affiliate, the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), warns that mobile based lending is expensive and hurts the needy. FILE PHOTO | DIANA NGILA 

In Summary

• Dubbed the global Equal Rating Innovation Challenge, the competition invites contributions on ways to provide unfettered access to the open Internet for anyone in the world.

Tech innovators from Kenya are set to flex muscles with their peers across the world in a Sh25million ($250,000) global competition organised by pioneer and advocate for the Open Web, Mozilla.

Dubbed the global Equal Rating Innovation Challenge, the competition invites contributions on ways to provide unfettered access to the open Internet for anyone in the world. 

Mozilla launched the call for submissions last week, asking entrepreneurs, designers, researchers and innovators to propose creative and scalable ideas for connecting more people to the Internet, built on local knowledge and expertise.

“At Mozilla, we believe the Internet is most powerful when anyone – regardless of gender, income, or geography – can participate equally,” said Mozilla’s chief innovation officer, Katharina Borchert.

“This challenge is designed to spur innovations for bringing the members of the Next Billion online. The Equal Rating Innovation Challenge is focused on identifying creative new solutions to connect the unconnected.”

This comes even as the digital rift remains a clear and persistent reality. Katharina said that these solutions may range from consumer products and novel mobile services to new business models and infrastructure proposals.

The Equal Rating Innovation Challenge will support promising solutions through expert mentorship and funding in prize monies split into three categories - Best Overall (based on scalability), Best Overall Runner-up and Most Novel Solution (based on experiment with a potential high reward).

To apply, Mozilla unveiled a website offering educational content and background information to support the challenge. It will also stream a series of webinars to further inform potential applicants about the challenge details.

Katharina said that connecting the unconnected is one of the greatest challenges of the current generation.

“No one organisation or effort can tackle it alone. We must come together and collaborate to build innovative and scalable ways to bring Internet access to the Next Billion - and the other billions, as well.”

Submissions are open from November 1, to January 6, 2017 and will be judged by a group of external experts.
The first round of selections will be announced by mid-January.

Selected finalists will receive mentorship for their projects before they demonstrate their ideas in March 2017. Final winners will be announced by end of March 2017.