In 2012, Max Kalis founded INFLUX TRUST as a bridge and source of engagement between the UN and the public. Since then, the INFLUX TRUST has been connecting the UN with people all over the world.
In the same vein, Microsoft partnered with the UN Influx to organize a hackathon event aimed at finding innovative solutions that will help build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization as well as facilitate the attainment of sustainable development goals using technology.
The essence of the hackathon is to spur people to be the change they truly want to see in the world by CONNECTING, CREATING and COLLABORATING.
In his opening address, the Regional Lead, UN Influx, Olufunbi Falayi stated that the hackathon event was necessitated by the need to push for the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals. According to him, “There is an important need to remain committed to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals as set by the United Nations.” Falayi noted that solutions that will be built at the event would focus on goal 9 of the SDGs which is building infrastructure.
“Lagos, Nigeria is the only African city and one of the 9 regions participating in this UN Hackathon exercise globally and 9 winning ideas from all 9 regions would feature at the UN Headquarters during the Science and Technology Summit later in the year,” Falayi said.
The 3-day hackathon which took place at Sidmach Technologies, Ikeja had over 100 young programmers with unique solutions from all over the country in attendance. Lagos hackers developed solutions around SDG 9 — INDUSTRY, INNOVATION & INFRASTRUCTURE.
Some of the selected teams are;
FLOEWS- A GIS enabled platform that monitors and forecast flood imminence
LEGIT CAR — LegitCar is a car theft deterrent system, Car Verification, Car Tracking and Car Sales Aggregation
BongaFul Peeps uses SMS to improve people’s access to fruits and vegetables.
BioGas aims to recycle organic waste to renewable energy&fertilizer using anaerobic digestion method
TeleVitals is an app focused on collecting real time data feeds of every individual & informs the doctor appropriately.
Moova is an app where you order your heavy duty vehicles which will transport agricultural products
M’Care provides access to specialist healthcare in 6minutes on mobile devices.
FARMOUSE is an online Auction platform for Pre-Harvested crops.
Farmbot.ai aim to use AI via SMS to predict the best planting season for farmers.
SMART TRANSIT
VILLAGE CONNECT
MRMS
Announcing winning ideas at the end of the event, Mr Falayi expressed optimism at the potentials of these solutions to transform various sectors they will feature in. The winning ideas include Smart Transit, an integrated transport system that gives commuters real-time information on buses routes, stops and fares via mobile application; Flowes, A GIS enabled cross-platform application that monitors and forecasts flood imminence, disseminating information to the vulnerable flood region for early preparedness while reducing risk, mitigating and strengthening path to resiliency and LegitCar, a car theft deterrent system which enables a car buyer search a vast database of stolen vehicles in Nigeria and verify their potential cars are not listed as one.
Winning teams will be given resources and support by the UN to hone, test and scale their ideas. They will also have a chance to DEMO at the UN HQ, New York City in June 2017.
After the global hackathon, all the winning ideas will be placed on the INFLUX TRUST Connect to Effect crowdfunding page to attract suitable investors, mentors and human resources.
The Lagos Hackathon is implemented by Passion Incubator, with support from Ford Foundation, LeadSpace, Printivo and Starta.
