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Falling Walls Lab Ghana 2023

From left to right: His Excellency, Daniel Krull (German Ambassador to Ghana), Maltiti Mohammed (Falling Walls Lab Ghana 2023 Winner), Tsonam Cleanse Akpeloo (Jury Chair, Falling Walls Lab Ghana 2023) © DAAD / Joshua Cleopas

Falling Walls Lab Ghana is an annual event that brings together young scientists and entrepreneurs from Ghana to showcase their research and ideas. After a year’s hiatus since 2021, a call for application was finally launched in February 2023 for the next Lab scheduled to take place in Accra on 26th May 2023. The event was organized by the DAAD Information Centre Accra in collaboration with StartUp Lounge Africa with support from the Federal Foreign Office of Germany.

This year, as many as 29 applications were received. After review of the applications by DAAD Information Centre Accra and the StartUp Lounge Africa, 12 projects were shortlisted to present their ideas at the Falling Walls Lab Ghana 2023.

At the Falling Walls Lab, each presenter had maximum 3 minutes to present their ideas to the jury where they stated the problem and proposed their solution. Presenters were free to also come along with prototypes or use videos to further explain their solutions. From a science innovation to a business solution to a social intervention, any idea is welcome.

The Falling Walls Lab Ghana 2023 included projects in agricultural science and farming, health, plastic recycling, the fight against deforestation among others.

DAAD / Joshua Cleopas

For 2023, the winning spot went to Maltiti Mohammed, a Ghanain student from the University for Development Studies in Tamale. He convinced the jury with his idea; Breaking the Wall of Plastic Pollution. Maltiti’s solution to one of Ghana’s biggest pollutants of our water bodies is to start a Clothing and accessories company which relies solely on recycled plastics. This involved melting and extruding the plastic into filaments and then drawing and twisting the filaments into yarn which can be used to make beautiful fabrics for clothings (for example, T-shirts).

© Maltiti Mohammed

“I saw an AD of the Falling Walls Lab competition on the DAAD Ghana twitter page and by then, I had already tested my recycled polyester to the virgin one which matched perfectly. I saw it as a great opportunity to showcase my idea on a big stage and potentially gain funding for my project. ” Maltiti Mohammed

In attendance at the Falling Wall Lab Ghana was the German Ambassador to Ghana, His Excellency Daniel Krull. The 7 member jury for the competition was chaired by Mr. Tsonam Cleanse Akpeloo (CEO of Suku Technologies and Chairman of the Association of Ghana Industries, Greater Accra).

The 2023 Falling Walls Lab Ghana Presenters

Maltiti Mohammed (2023 Winner)

Maltiti Mohammed (2023 Winner)

Breaking the Wall of Plastic Waste

My project is aimed at collecting plastic waste from our environment and recycling them into beautiful fabrics which are identical to regular polyester clothings. This would minimize the disposal of plastic waste in our water bodies and drainage systems.

Kekeli Yaw Dorkenoo (1st Runner Up, 2023)

Kekeli Yaw Dorkenoo (1st Runner Up, 2023)

Breaking the Wall of AIDS deaths

Developing an integrated tech based app with Hospital ERPs to facilitate HIV drug treatment and adherence with little to no physical human interactions. Adherence will lead to undetectable viral loads and reduce the spread of infections.

John Arday Ardayfio (2nd Runner Up 2023)

John Arday Ardayfio (2nd Runner Up 2023)

Breaking the wall of Hazards and Child Labor

We’re developing an agricultural machine to help women and Smallholder Cocoa farmers in West Africa who suffer from cutlass and spinal injuries as well as labour shortages, break their cocoa pods with an automated mechanism. Our maiden product is an automatic mobile cocoa pod sheller

Gideon Kofi Porturphy (Audience Award Winner)

Gideon Kofi Porturphy (Audience Award Winner)

Breaking the Wall of Skin Cancer

Rileva is an AI photo diagnosis tool that provides early cancer screening at zero cost within 2 seconds with 95% accuracy. Skin photos taken with smartphone cameras are uploaded to our cloud-based platform, which uses deep neural networks for detection.

Dr. Mrs. Esinam Anor

Dr. Mrs. Esinam Anor

Breaking the of Unsustainable Cooking Fuels

The project aims to find a sustainable solution to the use of unsustainable cooking fuels in rural communities in Ghana, which pose significant health and environmental risks such as deforestation and pollution. The Use of Palm Fruit Chaff has the potential to generate heat for cooking, has a high energy content and burns more efficiently than firewood, resulting in lower emissions of pollutants such as particulate matter, carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds which endangers human health.

Dorcas Asare

Dorcas Asare

Breaking the Wall of Financial Non-inclusion

With a team of visually impaired individuals and experts, we bring on board the project CASHAID to help the visually impaired access the atm independently without a third eye. To collaboratively bridge the gap between the visually impaired and the sighted people in our financial sector.

Timothy Asare

Timothy Asare

Breaking the Wall of Low Grain Yield in Africa

We have developed a model for a mechanized automated precision planter. This will allow farmers to plant 0.4 hectares of maize per hour, increasing productivity and reducing the dependence on manual labor. We believe that the right seeding rate affects emergence and subsequent production levels.

Bright Edudzi Gershon

Bright Edudzi Gershon

Breaking the Wall of Farmers Not Getting Help

Our solution is a mobile app that helps farmers detect crop diseases and reach out to extension officers when necessary. With the app, farmers can take a photo of the affected crop and receive accurate and timely information on the possible causes and also help them connect swiftly.

Ali Eliasu

Ali Eliasu

Breaking the Wall of Quarry Monitoring

By accessing Synthetic Aperture Radiation (SAR) maps of quarry sites and using Differential SAR interferometry I can calculate volume changes at various quarry pits. This will arm tax authorities with the data to apply the appropriate tax to get optimum revenues from the quarry companies.

Edem Kwame Bokoe

Edem Kwame Bokoe

Breaking the Wall of Antimicrobial Resistance

The finding that the addition of supplements can significantly increase the yields of bioactive metabolites is an important contribution to this field, as it suggests that supplements may have the potential to enhance the production of natural products with antimicrobial activity.

Thomas Tawiah Baah

Thomas Tawiah Baah

Breaking the Wall of Water Wastage

As a school project, we designed a low-cost water level indicator. The device is intended to indicate the tank’s water level and trigger the necessary action to prevent waste. Using basic science principles, we addressed water wastage and promoted efficient water management in schools.

Holy Hillarious Abonie

Holy Hillarious Abonie

Breaking the Wall of Improper Coconut Husk Disposal

By recycling discarded coconut husks into coal, not only can we prevent the need to cut down trees for coal production, but we can also generate employment opportunities.

The Falling walls lab was very exciting because not only did i get the opportunity to share my idea on a big stage, it also gave me the opportunity to network with other great innovators and Entrepreneurs. I’m so glad young people like me are given a chance to participate in making the world a better place.

Maltiti Mohammed (Falling Walls Lab Ghana 2023 Winner)

The programme is very interesting and well meant. The encouragement of idea generation to solve our national problems is laudable. I’m not sure how much coaching went into preparing the participants but it should be encouraged. It will be nice if the top 3 ideas are all rewarded. Feedback sessions should be held for the presenters.

Dr. Lydia Mosi (Senior Lecturer - University of Ghana, 2023 Lab Jury Member)

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