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Lusaka, 15th November, 2023 – Zindi, an online competition platform, in collaboration with UNILUS has organized an urban mobility Hackathon powered by Zambia’s leading e-hailing platform ,Yango which took place on Saturday, 4th November.
The hackathon provided an opportunity for data science enthusiasts across Zambia to work on a real-world mobility challenge that caters to specific transport and traffic solutions locally.
There was a total prize pool of $1000 to the three top-performing machine learning models built during this one-day hackathon.
About 174 participants took part from all over Zambia with female IT specialists being one of the most active in the competition.
Many participants also joined in remotely and were expected to build a machine-learning model that determines the average speed along major roads in Lusaka at different times of the day, using data from the September 2023 traffic pattern.
The hackathon lasted about 8 hours and there were about 570 submissions at the end.
Speaking at the event, Yango Country Manager Kabanda Chewe said ‘’Yango is dedicated to raising the next generation of data scientists in Zambia to bridge the gap of skills development and theoretical education.
As a tech company that provides technology for local transport companies that we partner to enable them offer rides to users and income generating opportunities for drivers, it is important that we are informed by data driven decisions.Thus we felt it is imperative to leverage the data we have to provide a platform that promotes young innovators and data scientists to create technological driven data solutions to our everyday challenges.”
Zindi Zambia Country Ambassador Mr. Yasin Musa Ayani followed up by noting that ‘’Zindi is thrilled to host an all-new data science hackathon powered by Yango focusing on predicting mobility in Lusaka.”
He reiterated that the challenge asked innovators to build a machine learning model that determines the average speed along major roads in Lusaka at different times of the day.
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“Zambia has previously not been collecting data on a local platform, making it difficult for data scientists to create solutions specific to our local needs. Hosting this challenge on Zindi allows local innovators to begin addressing local problems, as the data provided by Yango resonates with them as a local challenge.”
The University of Lusaka also expressed their appreciation to Yango and the facilitators of the hackathon.
‘’We are grateful for the opportunity given to our students to participate in the hackathon on urban mobility hosted at UNILUS. We’re looking forward to more experiences like this one, and our doors at the University of Lusaka are always open for collaboration. We’re thrilled to have had the opportunity to host the hackathon and we are excited about the prospect of future collaborations in support of our students, as UNILUS is committed to providing the best educational experience for our students’’ said Natasha Mawila, Director of Business Development at UNILUS.
In the end, the top three participants were applauded for their remarkable efforts.
Silas Phiri emerged as the overall winner with a score of 2.6837 while Jackson Kawala (2.7210) and Sitwala Mundia (2.7223) came 2nd and 3rd respectively.
About Yango:
Yango is an international tech company that transforms global sourced technologies into everyday services for local enrichment.
With an unwavering commitment to innovation, we reshape and enhance leading cutting-edge technologies from around the world into seamlessly integrated daily services for diverse regions.
Our mission is to bridge the gap between leading world innovations and local communities, fostering connections and enhancing everyday living experiences.
Yango provides its digital services, including ride-hailing, delivery, foodtech, IT bootcamp among many others, across 20+ countries in Africa, Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East through its superapp.
The multilingual app is available for free on Android and iOS.
For more information, please contact: pr@yango.com
About Zindi
Zindi was established in Cape Town in 2018, with the aim of making data science and artificial intelligence (AI) skills accessible to companies on the African continent.
With a network of 60 000 data scientists registered on the platform, from more than 180 countries around the world, Zindi helps data practitioners of all levels access tutorials and mentors to build their practical skills, and virtually participate in data science competitions.
They are also able to apply for jobs using their CV on the Zindi platform and connect with a broader community of practice.
Key global clients and partners include Microsoft, Google, Deepmind, Instadeep, and Ernst & Young.
For further information about Zindi, go to https://zindi.africa/business.
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