CAMTEL launches Blue Tech Challenge to support innovation!.

CAMTEL General Manager, Judith Yah Sunday Epse Achidi, launched the competition in Yaounde Tuesday February 27. 

This was on the sidelines of the CAMTEL Digital Day, held at the Mont Febe Hotel, under the theme: “Youth at the forefront of digital transformation”.

The competition, meant for students, young entrepreneurs and startupers, is expected to promote innovative ideas and make new technologies and innovations available for business development. 

The initiative will consist of putting universities, major schools, researchers and start-ups in the Cameroonian digital ecosystem into competition to reward excellence and the best initiatives.

The Blue Tech Challenge, which is specifically based on international experience, will award prizes in various categories among them; best woman-led start-up award, technological innovation award for people with disabilities, best women entrepreneurship initiative and others. 

A call for submission will be launched on March 30 this year. The CAMTEL General Manager disclosed that bodies will be set up to manage the competition.

This, she explained, is in a bid to guarantee transparency and fairness for better results. The bodies, made up of external experts, she added, will consist of a steering committee, the technical secretariat and a panel of judges. 

Unveils CAMTEL Start-Up & Innovation Forum

In addition to the Blue Tech Challenge, Judith Yah Sunday Epse Achidi also unveiled the CAMTEL Start-Up and Innovation Forum, which will be a permanent physical and virtual platform for sustained exchanges between actors in order to make the sector more competitive and productive. 

The CAMTEL GM said the launch of both projects shows the importance the State corporation accords to the youth in the digital transformation process. 

“This shows how often we are aware at CAMTEL of the important role that youth and Start-ups must play in promoting the digital economy and digital transformation. To support their actions and integrate them into our management and our challenges, CAMTEL will now organise each year from this year onwards, the two important events (Blue Tech Challenge and CAMTEL Start-Up and Innovation Forum), which were presented to you,” Judith Yah Sunday epse Achidi underlined in her closing address.

She added that these two projects are expected to yield a great impact by promoting the most innovative ideas, making new technologies and innovations available for the benefit of business development.

She said it will also contribute to the strengthening of growth profile of start-ups and research systems as well as seek greater visibility and capacity-building for targets.

The projects are also expected to highlight the work of start-ups, universities and institutes of research as well as help make start-ups and research ecosystem more dynamic.