Four Ashesi students were selected to participate in the Innovation “Idea Machine” Workshop at the 2015 Innovation Prize for Africa (IPA) awards ceremony in Shkirat, Morocco. The event brought together students from all over Africa to share creative ideas, and create ideas using the “Idea Machine.” The four Ashesi students, Daniel Addai Bonsu ‘16, Ayeley Commodore-Mensah ‘17, Julateh Mulbah ‘16 and Benedicta Emefa Gokah ’16, spent a week in Morocco exploring how to unleash the potential of youth to innovate for the future of Africa.
The IPA is an annual event organized by the African Innovation Foundation (AIF) that helps mobilise innovation and support development in Africa. Each year the award honours and encourages innovative achievements that contribute towards African development. Over 1700 ideas were generated in the “Ideas Machine”, out of which the best will be refined into workable and feasible solutions.
“It was a unique teaching process,” says Daniel. “Joining my peers and engaging other inspiring African leaders ultimately taught me that the future of the continent still remained in our hands as youth and will rely on our propensity to innovate.”
Attendees at the event included Jean-Claude Bastos de Morais, founder of the AIF, Markus Mettler, founder of Brainstore, BBC Presenter Lerato Mbele and renowned Senegalese singer Youssou N’Dour, among others.
“I believe every person, young and old, should have the chance to be exposed to a culture where continuous innovation is encouraged,” adds Benedicta. “We need to find solutions to problems and ways of improving daily living instead of shifting that responsibility to the next person because of the fixed mindset we have.”