By: Nana Appiah Acquaye
The United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) Ghana, in partnership with Samsung Mobile, has
announced continued support for winners of the Mobile Circularity Hackathon as
they transition from ideation to solution scaling.
The initiative is designed
to help young innovators refine and develop their solutions into scalable
enterprises addressing mobile device waste and advancing circular economy
principles in Ghana.
According to UNDP Ghana, the
winning teams will continue working from their respective UniPod innovation
facilities, where they will receive access to mentorship, prototyping
resources, and innovation networks aimed at strengthening their business models
and accelerating impact.
The support programme is
expected to help the innovators further develop their ideas into sustainable
ventures capable of addressing environmental challenges associated with
electronic waste while creating economic opportunities.
The top three winning teams
were recognized for their innovative approaches to mobile circularity. E-waste
Marshalls emerged as the Diamond winner, followed by E-Cycle Connect as Gold
winner, and Nkabom Innovations as Silver winner.
Organisers say the hackathon
forms part of broader efforts to promote sustainable digital ecosystems and
encourage youth-led innovation in addressing environmental challenges linked to
technology consumption and disposal.
UNDP Ghana emphasized that
the journey for the winning teams is only beginning, with continued technical
and business development support aimed at helping them translate their concepts
into impactful, market-ready solutions.
The programme reflects
growing collaboration between development partners and the private sector to
advance circular economy solutions and foster innovation-driven
entrepreneurship in Ghana and across the region.
