AAU’s Hult Prize OnCampus Program Gets ‘Youth Empowerment Award’
ADDIS ABABA – The Hult Prize OnCampus Program at Addis Ababa University (AAU) has been recognized with the ‘Youth Empowerment Award’ by the Hult Prize Foundation.
With a $1,000,000 global startup prize as its anchor activity, the Hult Prize is an annual, year-long competition that crowdsources ideas from university-level students after challenging them to solve a pressing social issue. the
The Hult Prize AAU OnCampus program hosts the annual university students’ start-up contest that serves as the first phase of the Hult Prize competition.
Apart from selecting a winning team that represents the university, the OnCampus competition often leaves many participating students empowered with trainings and businesses of their own.
So far, the program has impacted the lives of more than a thousand students, noted Kirubel Engdawork, director of the AAU OCampus Program.
‘Youth Empowerment Award’
The Hult Prize Foundation put Kirubel among the 2022 Best Campus Directors who “brought new ideas, change, inspiration, very innovated programs”.
Hult Prize AAU OnCampus program was also recognized with the first-ever ‘Youth Empowerment Award’ in an event held in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, this week.
Kirubel said the award shows that “students can become changemakers if they can get the proper support from the right people.”
“To be selected from over 150 On-Campus programs is something that would motivate students to follow in our footsteps and create a positive impact in their community,” said Kirubel.
“We believe that this is a great success for Addis Ababa University and Ethiopia,” he added.
This year, a team of fourth-year students from AA Science and Technology University advanced to regional finals after winning the Hult Prize AAU OnCampus program for their App named Agelgil.
The app facilitates on-campus food delivery services by linking restaurants around campus areas with the students and faculty looking to order different dishes while creating job opportunities for students with financial limitations.
Team Mighty, proposed a business idea that aims to empower women in refugee camps and in incarceration by adding value to the traditional pottery business, and Team TICVO, who proposed a plastic recycling business through incentive offering, finished second and third.
