Mombasa to host major innovation week forum – Kenya News Agency
Mombasa and other coastal counties will host the 3rd Edition of the Pwani Innovation Week (PIW) to create a culture of widespread innovation in the region.
The Innovation Week, under the theme “Leveraging the opportunities of Covid-19 to create a better future”, will be an opportunity for individuals and the public and private sectors to address challenges and find solutions in the businesses and other economic activities.
The forum is organized by the Swahilipot Foundation Hub in collaboration with Kenya National Chambers of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI), Mombasa County Government and other partners.
The annual event which did not take place in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic is scheduled for 28and at 31st March this year.
This will involve hackathons/challenges, training boot camps and networking, women in tech, techkids expo, roundtables and talent pwani gat among others.
“Innovation catalyzes the aspiration of individuals, private institutions and governments to achieve development by generating creative ideas and introducing new products and services that improve the overall quality of life,” said Swahilipot founder, Mahmud Noor.
Noor said this will provide a platform for national and county governments, industries, businesses, organizations and individuals to showcase, engage, discuss and explore how the world, through the lens of coastal counties, is moving beyond economic growth by taking advantage of Covid-19 Opportunities.
“We intend to inspire innovators, policymakers, businesses, funders, researchers and others to take risks on new ideas and trends, collaborate across sectors and transform the Kenyan coast through scaling up innovation,” he added.
Noor said the main objective of the innovation week is to provide innovators, start-ups and established companies, who are tackling challenges affecting communities in the coastal region, the opportunity to showcase their innovations.
“The event will also encourage public-private partnerships to improve trade, economic resilience and encourage young people to take responsibility for solving societal problems,” the Swahilipot boss said.
Noor also thanked the Cabinet Secretary for ICT, Innovation and Youth, Joe Mucheru, for his invaluable support of the event and other activities aimed at promoting innovation and youth talent in the region and the whole county in general.
“We really appreciate the continued support in our activities by the Cabinet Secretary and the Ministry,” he added, during a press briefing at the Swahilipot Foundation in Mombasa on Friday.
Chief Business Development and Innovation Manager of Konza Technopolis, Stella Muhoro, congratulated the Swahilipot Foundation for this initiative and pledged to support the event.
“We support such events through our platforms because technology is essential to the development of our country,” Muhoro said.
Chief Executive Officer of Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, James Kitavi, said the pwani innovation week will provide a good opportunity for individuals, businesses and businesses to interact and seek solutions to challenges they face.
Last year in December 2019, Pwani Innovation Week attracted over 600 participants from national and county governments, technology development partners, upcoming innovators and students.
Sponsors included Safaricom, ICT Authority, Huawei, UKaid, Seacom, Africa Youth Trust and the Kenya Red Cross.
Swahilipot Foundation Hub is a non-profit organization in Mombasa that focuses on inspiring and nurturing entrepreneurs and creativity through networking, technical training, support, business mentoring and coaching.
Chief Administrative Secretary (CAS) at the Ministry of ICT, Innovation and Youth Nadia Ahmed is from Swahilipot, where she was a volunteer.
Nadia urged the country’s youth to be innovative and challenged them to turn their abundant talent, exuberance and energy into sources of income to drive economic growth.
By Mohammad Hassan