By Betty Wairegi

The Hult Prize Club is an inspiring movement with a vision of empowering young entrepreneurs to do business by competing in yearly challenges and taking part in impact programs. The participants not only become conscious entrepreneurs but also form part of a new generation of global leaders.

On Friday, March 11, 2022, the Hult Prize USIU-Africa Club held their first on-campus program at the auditorium. The event involved registered teams of up to 3 or 4 students, who had a viable and scalable business idea that aligned with the theme released by Hult Prize Global which is 'getting the world back to work.’ The teams presented their ideas before a qualified panel of judges who evaluated their ideas and chose 3 top teams who will proceed to the Regional Summit.

The judges were selected from a pool of influential and accomplished individuals, and they included Oliver Tambo, HR Talent Acquisition and Special Projects at L’Oréal East Africa, Olive Gachara- Founder & CEO Couture Africa Limited, Irene Githinji - Student Programs Manager at Microsoft and our very own Dr. Leah Mutanu, a faculty member at the School of Science and Technology.

A group of nine teams took the initiative to participate in the competition: AMAKA AFRIKA, OZAI, KAZINI, TYRO, JUMPSTART, PTR, MATRIX, SAYARI, ALPHA. The teams had amazing ideas that addressed various problems affecting the world such as how to end period poverty (OZAI), recycling plastic and improving the environment (MATRIX), and creating equal job opportunities for everyone (JUMPSTART).

After intense deliberation by the judges, the top 3 teams were chosen and awarded during the networking gala where students were able to interact with the invited guests and speakers and get more information in different fields.

In third place was team TYRO, whose idea focused on an innovative approach towards building construction. Their plan focuses on the creation of building materials infused with copper that will be able to supply electricity to converters that can power the buildings.

Team KASKAZINI came in 2nd place with a phenomenal idea which aims to create a platform where people can get access to help them generate revenue, especially for informal workers.

The winners of the day were Team AMAKA AFRIKA, who addressed the transportation issue in Zambia and how introduction of alternative means such as motorbikes would improve the transportation system.

The winning teams will be moving to the Regional Summit as they compete with other universities in hopes to bring the $ 1,000,000 prize back home. We wish them all the best. The event was sponsored by Coca-Cola, Kericho Gold and L’Oréal East Africa.