Signup for our Virtual Event where you’d learn design thinking, form a team across the continent and build a tech solution to create opportunities for over 400 million talented Africans and win cool prizes.
Why Afrikathon?
There has never been a better time to upgrade. The world is evolving faster than it used to. Young Africans are faced with the reality of a technological evolution that does not wait for anyone to catch up. Our people are arming themselves with skills that will enable them to create, because in today’s world, the creators make the rules.
We are the greatest asset of Africa. Why? Because we dictate the future of Africa. Countries in Africa have high unemployment rates and do not possess the industries or the infrastructure to enable young Africans thrive. This is why Afrikathon is important.
Africa’s youth population is rapidly growing, and is expected to double to over 830 million by 2050. Of Africa’s nearly 420 million youth aged 15-35, one-third are unemployed and their prospects are low. Another third of this large number are vulnerably employed, and only one in six are in wage employment. According to the World Bank, young people make up 60% of all unemployed Africans. These are sad numbers to work with, but it can be salvaged.
In addition to this, we have to consider the reality of the world post-coronavirus. The sad fact is that the demand for technology and technological skills will rise, and so many jobs will cease to exist. A third of African youths are unemployed, and in the wake of COVID-19, the numbers will double. But does it have to?
We can hack into the future and change this picture. We can rewrite the code for Africa and Africans. We can use our talents, our skills, and our resources to ensure that we will not be swept up by the wave that will soon hit the world we know. Afrikathon is a means.
With remote-working rapidly becoming mainstream, young Africans will need to adapt to this culture, and evolve with it. This is why the Afrikathon Experience simulates a remote work condition, implementing real life situations; with sessions, check-ins, calls, time zones and language barriers.
Afrikathon is the portal through which we can go, and emerge prepared.
For the future, and for Africa!
5 days of intensive ideation and prototyping sprints characterized by user-centered product development
Design Thinking
Design Thinking is the process utilized to solve wicked problems, the best knowledge to acquire is one that gives you the capability to learn what you don’t know, and we believe design thinking is one tool that can help you achieve that and even better understand how to create solutions around any problem space.
Team Formation
We open up team formation for individuals to create teams of 2-4 max, with individuals within their regions or from other countries. Each Team will assign a team lead who will be responsible for all check-ins, calls and team deliverables.
Brain Storming
Teams can now utilize the design thinking skills into brainstorm and problem space exploration sessions, to dig deep into their selected hackathon category of interest and propose their intended solutions to these problems.
Hack for Opportunities, Hack for the Future
The Afrikathon Experience simulates a remote work condition, implementing real life situations; with sessions, check-ins, calls, time zones and language barriers. Afrikathon is the portal through which we can go, and emerge prepared.
For the future, and for Africa!
Create your Team
Inspired by the UN SDG, These highlighted tracks are the areas more likely to benefit from opportunity creation. We are open to include tracks in more industries that could benefit from the opportunity hackathon. Feel free to reach out to us to spearhead one
How can we create opportunities that enable decent work and living, according to the UN SDG Goal?
How can we create opportunities that promote gender equality in and out of the workplace? If you’d like to lead this track reach out to us
How can we create opportunities in Media & Entertainment, to enable creatives, artists, musicians generate value for their work? If you’d like your organization to spearhead this track, please reach out to us
How can we create opportunities in the Education Sector, we are looking for innovations that would introduce novel approaches to learning, and allow educators and instructors earn from these activities. If you’d like your organization to spearhead this track, please reach out to us
Now more than ever, people should be able to work from anywhere, this track focuses on creating innovative solutions that will allow individuals earn from work activities remotely or from home. If you’d like your organization to spearhead this track, please reach out to us
