Innovation in Action: Reflections on the Tabiya Hackathon at Pwani Innovation Week 2024

Following our partnership announcement with Swahili Pot to host a hackathon at this year’s Pwani Innovation Week, the event took place from October 14th to 18th, 2024, at Swahili Pot Hub in Mombasa, Kenya. As anticipated, it was a roaring success! The collaboration brought together an inspiring mix of developers, innovators, and change-makers- all eager to explore solutions for youth employment and community development.

Throughout the hackathon, participants used Tabiya’s open-source tools to explore ways to expand economic opportunities, especially for young people in low- and middle-income countries. Tabiya's tools, including the Compass chatbot, the Livelihoods Classifier, and the Taxonomy model, were integral to many team's projects. These tools enabled participants to imagine a range of innovative solutions, including systems that matched skills with job opportunities, automatically generated CVs for job seekers, and provided personalized job recommendations.

Spotlight on the Winning Teams

1. Vision Poa Youth Group (First Prize – USD 1,500)
   Vision Poa Youth Group developed the idea for a formidable platform that connects marginalized youth with job opportunities and integrates educational resources to support long-term skill development. By addressing both immediate employment needs and promoting continuous learning, Vision Poa ensures young people are equipped for sustained success. This balanced focus on job placement and skill-building secured them the top prize.
   Impact: Vision Poa’s platform is particularly relevant for underserved communities, providing youth with the tools they need to thrive in both the job market and personal growth.
2. Compass 2.0 (Second Prize – USD 1,000)
   Compass 2.0 introduced an innovative multi-agent system designed to support career development and job searching. By leveraging Tabiya’s enhanced taxonomy, the platform helps users by suggesting relevant skills based on a job title and recommending potential job roles aligned with their skill set. The system also includes features for generating tailored resumes that align with specific job descriptions.
   Impact: By using AI-driven insights to empower individuals in their career journeys, Compass 2.0 exemplifies how technology can unlock professional growth and opportunity.
3. Tech for Good (Special Prize – USD 500)
   Tech for Good impressed the judges with its potential to drive positive change in underserved communities. The team’s tech solutions address essential needs, including access to clean water and affordable healthcare. Their project combined creative problem-solving with a strong commitment to improving life quality in vulnerable areas.
   Impact: Tech for Good’s practical, community-centered solutions provide immediate benefits, illustrating how technology can drive social change.

Innovative Teams: A Glimpse into All Participants

Beyond the winning teams, the hackathon featured an array of inventive projects, each offering fresh ideas for tackling social challenges. Here’s a summary of the other participating teams:

• Team Dothraki
  Solution: "AI Career Match" uses NLP (Natural Language Processing) to match job seekers with suitable roles based on skills, simplifying the job search process.
  Impact: This solution provides a personalized, efficient job search experience, reducing youth unemployment.
• The Technophile
  Solution: EduMentor is a chatbot that provides students with tailored educational and career advice, helping them align their studies with career goals.
  Impact: EduMentor bridges the gap between education and employment by guiding students toward informed career choices.
• GreenSkills Navigator
  Solution: This platform connects youth with jobs in sustainable sectors, supporting green career pathways through personalized assessments and recommendations.
  Impact: GreenSkills Navigator promotes sustainable employment and prepares youth for roles in emerging green industries.
• Hermes
  Solution: Hermes automates networking for young professionals, connecting them with job opportunities and key decision-makers.
  Impact: By simplifying access to job networks, Hermes increases career accessibility for youth with limited professional contacts.
• Sanpa Construction
  Solution: Sanpa Construction’s mobile platform improves resource allocation on construction sites, ensuring fair hiring practices and project efficiency.
  Impact: This tool promotes transparency and provides structured employment access for young construction workers.
• OpnTask
  Solution: OpnTask connects informal workers with remote gig opportunities, bridging the gap between informal and formal economies.
  Impact: OpnTask provides economic inclusion by helping marginalized workers access global opportunities in the gig economy.
• Smart Agric
  Solution: "AgriGuard AI" enables early detection of crop diseases, supporting farmers in increasing yields and reducing losses.
  Impact: This solution promotes food security by empowering farmers with preventive, data-driven insights.
• Cortex AI
  Solution: Cortex AI serves as a virtual sales assistant for businesses, automating customer engagement and guiding clients through sales.
  Impact: This tool empowers young entrepreneurs by enhancing sales efficiency and scalability in small businesses.
• LinkMaster
  Solution: LinkMaster automates job and event matching, connecting users with relevant opportunities based on their profiles.
  Impact: By improving access to jobs and events, LinkMaster supports users in pursuing career development and skill-building opportunities.
• Ramani Chatbot
  Solution: Ramani assists job seekers by automating skill analysis and providing career advice, bridging skill gaps through recommended resources.
  Impact: Ramani promotes career readiness and facilitates access to learning resources for youth with limited job search experience.
• Sasa Tech
  Solution: "Modern, Innovative, Now" connects youth to job opportunities through an AI-driven interface, providing structured career development pathways.
  Impact: Sasa Tech enhances career accessibility and supports long-term professional development for young job seekers.
• SkillBridge
  Solution: SkillBridge fosters connections between students, job seekers, institutions, and employers to streamline the transition from education to employment.
  Impact: This platform aligns education with market demands, enhancing employability and supporting career progression.

Each of these teams showcased creative solutions with the potential to create lasting change in their communities.

Looking Ahead: Tabiya's Role in Supporting Innovation
The Tabiya Hackathon at Pwani Innovation Week was more than just a showcase of inventive ideas—it offered valuable insights into how our tools can support real-world applications. As an organization focused on addressing the global youth unemployment challenge, Tabiya received practical feedback on the accessibility and adaptability of our open-source tools. Seeing participants use these resources as a foundation for their projects highlighted the tools' potential to foster meaningful change.

This hackathon also underscored how Tabiya’s technology can serve as a flexible base for other organizations working to create inclusive labor markets and skill-based pathways to employment. The diversity of solutions that emerged reinforced our commitment to refining our tools to ensure they remain accessible and effective for a wide range of innovators. We look forward to future opportunities that will continue to inspire fresh ideas and practical solutions to tackle the global youth unemployment challenge.