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Tech for Good 2022

Showcasing Tech Innovations for Social Good in Africa

The Tech for Good (T4G) is an annual conference that aims to showcase the impact of using Technology for Social Good in Africa.

The second edition of the just concluded Tech for Good conference was held on the 29th of October 2022 at the Rivers State ICT, Techcreek.

Purpose of Tech for Good

There is a lot of negative information being spread out there concerning Tech and its use in Africa. We created Tech for Good to solve this problem.

To understand more about the purpose of the Tech for Good conference, check out the first edition – Tech for Good 2021.

Highlights from the event

Tech for Good 2.0 was so loaded and full of impact, reporting over 250 persons in attendance, 5 speakers, 6 Social impact orgs, and over 20 people including organizations and startups awarded during the Tech for Good Awards.

Speaker Lineup

This year’s conference featured some seasoned speakers, such as;

  • Mr. Bruce Lucas – Founder and CEO of Olotusquare spoke on “The Journey so Far: Social Impact, Challenges of Tech in Africa”.
  • Davio White, a brand and product designer spoke on Designing for Social Impact
  • Umasoye Igwe, a creative writer and advocate for indigenous languages spoke on “How Tech is revolutionizing indigenous languages for Africans”
  • Sokaribo Senibo, a Software Developer spoke on “Leveraging Tech for Good: Veritable Use cases”
  • Tosin Emmanuel, founder of Blockchain Uniport spoke on “Blockchain Technology as a medium for Social impact in Africa”

Social Impact Project Showcase

The social impact project showcase aims to showcase projects and products built for social good in Africa.

Social impact projects like InformHER, was present to showcase their projects and products

  • InformHer

InformHer helps to empower young girls with the information needed to make decisions about their bodies and sex-related issues while making sure that they embrace their femininity

You can follow @helixgade on Social media to learn more.

Social Impact Orgs

Organizations and companies working tirelessly to ensure the vision of building Tech for Good were not left out, these organizations were invited to tell their Social Impact Story. The aim is to showcase the works of these companies and organizations in Tech.

Some organizations present include:

  • Accelerate Hub

Accelerate Innovation Hub is a technology incubation hub that focuses on facilitating student development in the area of technology and tech entrepreneurship. We aim to create a community that prompts collaboration, ideation, innovation, and synergy for student tech enthusiasts. 

You can follow @acceleratehubng on Social media or visit their website: http://acceleratehub.co/ 

Accelerate Hub – WInner of Social Impact Organization (Non profit) 2022 receiving its award
  • Code Ambassadors

Code Ambassadors Lab is an EdTech Start-up that inspires and equips children between the ages of 5-17 with tech(coding, robotics, Artificial intelligence, etc.), problem-solving, and critical thinking skills. We have trained over 3000 children and are partnered with over 10 organizations and schools within four years. 

The vision is to raise young tech founders in Africa who will leverage technology to solve problems.

You can follow @codeambassadors on Social media or visit their website: https://codeambassadors.org/

  • Technoville NG

Technoville innovation Nigeria is a leading technology organization aimed at social impact and innovative technology solutions. With a vision to “Ignite Curiosity”, it is committed to providing an environment where technology and innovative skills are attainable and curiosity is applauded.

Technoville was founded in 2018, by passionate young people who believe that technology can transform individuals and nations.

You can follow @technovillehq on Social media or visit their website: https://technovillehq.com/

Technoville Nigeria Team
  • Extend Africa

Extend Africa is a community for the immersive tech ecosystem in Africa.

We believe that with this platform, we can strategically project the works of extended reality creators in Africa to the world. We are also certain that through this platform, more people will find use cases of extended reality in ways that will immensely improve their lives.

You can follow @extendafrica on Social media or visit their website: https://extend.africa/

Gospel Ononwi – founder of Extend Africa
  • Blockchain Uniport

Blockchain Uniport is committed to bridging the gap between the student community and their knowledge of Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain Technology in general.

We are determined to build a community force of well-informed students who are equipped for the future of technology.

You can follow @blockchainuniport on Social media.

Tosin Emmanuel – Founder of Blockchain Uniport

Panel Session

The panel session brought together techies doing social impact work to tell their Tech for Good story;

Panelist session – Joy Nwaiwu, Wisdom Nwokocha, Philip Atimor, Godwin Jimmy, Somkene Mamah, Sokaribo Senibo, Solomon Eseme, Smith Nwokocha

Tech for Good Awards

The Tech for Good Social Impact Awards honors individuals, startups, non-profits, and volunteers who use their platforms to better their community and the global community at large. 

The following is the list of the awardees and nominees for the Tech for Good social impact awards.

Social Impact Icon 2022 (Green Category)

  • Louis Whyte Jonah – Accelerate Hub (nominated)
  • Wisdom Nwokocha – Mentorship (A)
  • Pepple Richard – Technoville (Award)
  • Godwin Jimmy Akpabio – Accelerate Hub, NFTikets (Award)
  • Philip Chukwunonso Obiorah – Co Lead, GDG Cloud, Port Harcourt (Award)
  • Faith Pueneh – Mentorship (nominated)

Social Impact Icon 2022 (Veteran Category)

  • Bruce Lucas – Olotu Square (Award winner)
  • Gino Osahon – GDG Cloud PH (Award winner)

Social Impact (Non-Profit)

  • Accelerate Hub (Award winner)
  • Code Ambassadors (nominated)
  • Harvoxx Tech Hub (nominated)

Startup for Good

  • Mently (Award winner)
  • NFTikets (Award winner)
  • Dantown (Award winner)
  • Bankable Wisdom(nominated)
  • Acend (nominated)

Volunteer of the year awards

  • Jennifer Etegbeke
  • Temitayo Alebiosu
  • Faith Agugoesi
  • Caleb Duff

Our Star Girl

Deborah Folorunsho, a student and member of Code Ambassadors showcased her project at this year’s Tech for Good conference. 

Deborah is a 14-year-old girl who built an app to help addicts recover from their addictions.

She was also featured on Guardian news recently in an article where she talked about her project in detail.

You can read more about her solution on the Guardian News.

Important Links

For more inquiries about the Tech for Good conference, send us a Hi to hello@techrity.org

Thanks for reading!!

Categories
Build4SocialGood General Mentorship Tech

Using Your Tech Skills for Social Good: The Role Of Mentoring

You’ve probably been advised to find a mentor in your chosen area, someone with whom you can speak and who can provide you with excellent advice and assistance as you embark on your chosen career path. But have you ever pondered over the benefits of having a mentor? And the reason to have one if you don’t already? 

This article discusses the importance of having a mentor and the benefits of having one.

Why You Should Have A Mentor?

A mentor is a person or friend who acts as an advisor or coach to a less experienced person and guides them through a learning process using their professional knowledge.
When it comes to breaking into the tech sector, having a mentor is crucial – whether you’re learning to code or looking for your first (or next) job.
Here are seven reasons why you should seek out a mentor:

  1. Learning from their experiences: Your mentor can help advise you or warn you if you’re going to make the same mistakes they did, saving you time, money, and other valuable resources.

    Think of them as your guide. 
  1. Shortcut to Best Practices: It’s fantastic when someone can tell you about their tried-and-true best practices. You will learn much more quickly and efficiently this way.

    So mentors help you apply methods that work straight away. 😎
  1. Source Inspiration: It’s awesome to have someone you look up to as your mentor because hearing their stories and experiences motivates and inspires you even more which makes you more ambitious and excited to be doing what you are doing

    This makes you more ambitious and excited to be doing what you are doing.
  1. Learning to ask the right questions: Good mentors ask probing questions to get you to reflect on the process you’re going through, whether it’s learning to code or advancing your career. But, surprise, surprise! Many times, you are the only one who can respond to these inquiries.

    And Learning how to ask yourself those types of questions is very important.
  1. Accountability: Mentors can be super helpful in your career journey by keeping you accountable and making sure you are sticking to your goals and, keeping up with the learning process.
  1. Objective Feedback: A mentor sees you as you are (without being biased) and, they can give you honest and objective feedback, which makes you better.
  1. Networking: A mentor can help you become better at networking and improve your professional and communication skills. They can also expand your horizons by introducing you to the right people in their network and, this is super valuable.

Why It’s A Win-Win for Both The Mentor and Mentee?

Yup! That’s correct. Mentors gain from sharing their expertise with mentees as well. Most of our attention is focused on people who are being mentored, but what are the benefits for mentors? Why should they devote their time to assisting others in honing their abilities? Let’s have a look at some of them:

  1. Builds soft skills: Mentoring allows you to expand your soft skills. It requires you to put yourself in your mentees’ shoes, which in turn, will help to build soft skills like empathy, leadership skills, effective communication, and collaboration skills.
  1. Continuous learning: Mentorship allows you to keep on learning and growing in your field. The more you share knowledge with your mentees, the more you reinforce that knowledge.
  1. Builds confidence: Consistently sharing your knowledge with someone else can improve your self-confidence. The more you teach your mentees and help them with the challenges they face, the more confident you’ll be.
  1. Establish strong connections: Mentoring is another opportunity for you to build great relationships with individuals from different backgrounds.

Three (3) Ways to Become A Great Mentor.

  1. Good listener: A great mentor should demonstrate active listening skills. Active listening helps you identify issues and find better solutions to the problems your mentee might be facing. Having good listening skills will help you to guide your mentee in the right direction.
  1. Constructive feedback: What better way to help your mentee than giving helpful feedback and actionable suggestions! But remember that there is always a way to deliver criticism without breaking your mentee’s confidence. Educate them, not tear them down. 🤝
  1. Willingness to share knowledge: Great mentors are always willing to share what they know. As a mentor, you understand what it felt like starting your career so this motivates you to pay it forward through mentorship.

Yes! You’ve made it all the way to the end of this article. I’m confident you now know what a mentor is and the advantages of having one!
If you want to be a part of a structured mentorship program designed to help you succeed in your chosen career path in the tech industry, Visit: Techrity Mentorship Program
Thanks for reading!