Africa Innovation Award for Engineering Worth 25,000 Pounds for Engineers from Sub-Saharan Africa

Royal Academy of Engineering is proud to announce that the application for The Africa Prize is now open. The Africa Prize encourages ambitious and talented sub-Saharan African engineers from all disciplines to apply their skills to develop brilliant solutions to local challenges, highlighting the importance of engineering as a possible solution to improve quality of life and economic development. Crucial commercial support is awarded to a shortlist of innovative applicants through an eight-month period of training and mentoring. By the end of the training period, applicants should have achieved the development of, and be in the early stages of commercializing their engineering innovation that:

[1] Will bring social and environmental benefits to countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

[2] Has strong potential to be replicated and scaled up

[3] Is accompanied by an ambitious but realistic business plan which has strong commercial viability.

To be eligible for Africa Prize:

[1] Individual applicants must be citizens of a country within sub-Saharan Africa, the Arab countries are Comoros, Djibouti, Mauritania, Somalia, and Sudan. For teams of two or more, the lead applicant must be a citizen of a country within sub-Saharan Africa.

[2] The innovation must be based in a country in sub-Saharan Africa.

[3] Applicants must have an engineering innovation, though are not required to be an engineering graduate or student.

[4] Applicants must provide a letter of support from a university or research institution, this can be as simple as stating an individual studied at that institution. If applicants are not affiliated with a university, another document proving the status of your organization or innovation, such as a document of incorporation or similar, can be used.

[5] The lead applicant must be over the age of 18.

[6] The applicant’s innovation can be any new product, technology or service, based on research in engineering defined in its broadest sense to encompass a wide range of fields, including: agricultural technology, biotechnology, chemical engineering, civil engineering, computer science, design engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, ICT, materials science, mechanical engineering, and medical engineering.

Selection process:

Following the eight-month period of mentorship, finalists are invited to present at an event held in Africa and a winner is selected to receive £25,000 along with three runners-up, who are each receive up to £10,000. The final event for the Africa Prize 2018 will take place in Nairobi, Kenya on Wednesday 13 June.

About Royal Academy of Engineering

Royal Academy of Engineering is UK’s national academy for engineering, it brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors to advance and promote excellence in engineering. The academy provides analysis and policy support to promote the UK’s role as a great place to do business, as it takes a lead on engineering education and invests in the UK’s world-class research base to support innovation. Royal Academy of Engineering uses their international partnerships to ensure that the UK benefits from international networks, expertise, and investment.