*Prof. Mohammed Ajiya, Chairman of panel of judges for the competition held in Lagos, commends the Nigerian Communications Commission on providing the opportunity for young Nigerians to leverage digital solutions to address local challenges in the country’s economy

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A mobile ridesharing mobile app that enables consumers to request taxi and bus rides tagged, Nairaxi, has emerged over all winner at the Young Innovators’ competition in Lagos.

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), organised the event, which held at the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI), Oshodi, in Lagos, recently.

The winner tech company, which took the coveted prize with value of N2 million, is made up of Kingsley Eze, Co-Founder/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Elizabeth Omale, Co-Founder and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) presented an app, which will enhance rideshare and safe delivery of packages to an audience including top officials of the Commission.

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Mr. Reuben Muoka, Director of Public Affairs at NCC, Saturday, February 18, 2023, stated the Commission’s team was led by Mr. Ismaila Adedigba, Director of Research and Development at NCC, who represented Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the Commission.

On the other hand, Floews, which comprised Bashir Abubakar as Founder and Chief Executive Officer, came second with a prize of N1.5 million while Thronix Lab, comprising three young tech-savvy Nigerians, clinched the 3rd position and won a cash prize of N1 million respectively.

How the contestants emerged winners

The telecoms sector regulatory Commission disclosed that all the contestants were adjudged on the criteria of originality, innovativeness, simplicity of usage and commercialisation potential of their Information Technology (IT) products, among others.

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Floews developed novel and deep-tech all-round solution that monitors and forecasts flood imminence and thereby, disseminate the forecast as an early-warning intelligence, while Thronix Lab developed Proxie, an Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled smart socket and Wi-Fi hotspot range extender.

The firm’s solution enables users to switch on/off their appliances connected to it remotely through their phones, said NCC.

Prof. Mohammed Ajiya, who chaired the panel of judges for the competition, commended the Commission for providing the opportunity for young Nigerians to achieve their dreams of leveraging digital solutions to address local challenges in Nigeria.

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Speaking on behalf of the EVC/CEO, Adedigba, Director R&D at NCC, also applauded all the 15 contestants that participated, and the panel of judges for the 鈥渃ommendable diligence, through and painstaking evaluation carried out by his team of independent judges, leading to the emergence of the three winners.鈥�

The NCC Executive Vice-Chairman assured of the Commission’s commitment to driving the Federal Government agenda of promoting indigenous ICT solutions towards strengthening the Nigerian digital ecosystem.

Danbatta further stated: 鈥淚t is important to note that this competition is not the end, but rather the beginning of our collective journey towards bridging the digital divide in Nigeria.

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“We must continue to support and invest in local, indigenous digital solutions to ensure that all citizens have access to the technology and opportunities they need to thrive in today’s digital age.鈥�

The Commission said the 10 innovators from the 15 proceeded to the Pitching Stage, for having developed the best technology solutions, amenable to commercialisation and capable of solving identified challenges both locally and beyond in a move to bridge the country鈥檚 existing digital divide.

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The 15 contestants at the event are Curnance PTY, Floews, Lalita by 02 Innovations Lab, Brilliant ESystems, Afrits Innovation, CitiFlow, Natal Cares, Nairaxi, Rate AM, Fixbot Technologies, Betalife, Cyber Plural, TronixLab, Ntapi Inc., and Bycep by Bedoun, said the Commission.

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