The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has extended the deadline for the submission of applications and entries for the 2023 Talent Hunt through Hackathon until Saturday, September 30, 2023.
As a result, the initial closing date for application/entries, which was initially set for today, September 22, 2023, has been extended to the last day of September 2023. This extension has been granted to allow more prospective startups to refine their solutions in the required format for submission and to encourage more emerging technology entrepreneurs to participate in the competition.
The NCC Talent Hunt, which aligns with the Commission’s Strategic Vision Plan 2023-2025, serves as a platform for promoting the development of new technologies and local content through innovative research, thereby fostering sustainable economic growth and development in Nigeria.
The Commission had earlier invited Tech Hubs and Innovation-Driven Enterprises (IDEs) in Nigeria to register their startups and solutions for the third edition of the NCC Talent Hunt Research via a Hackathon. The focus areas for this competition include Blockchain-enabled Data Protection Solutions to Enhance Regulatory Compliance, Assistive Technology Solutions for the Elderly and People with Disabilities, and Technology Solutions for Renewable Energy in Rural Areas.
The NCC Talent Hunt Research through Hackathon utilizes emerging digital technologies to facilitate the creation of innovative solutions and local content within the telecommunications sector, ultimately driving economic growth and societal progress in Nigeria.
In this competition, novel ideas are translated into hardware/software solutions that address industry and societal challenges. The top three solutions, one from each of the three thematic areas mentioned earlier, will receive grants of N10 million each for further development.
The Commission has established eligibility criteria for participants, including the requirement that the applying enterprise must be registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and must not have previously received support from the Commission. Additionally, the project should be directly relevant to one of the three specified thematic areas and must present a clear problem statement, proposed solution, and deployment roadmap.
Other prerequisites encompass a proof of concept, declaration of intellectual property ownership, a commitment to conclude prototype development within six months of receiving the grant, and a detailed commercialization plan for the prototype.
The entry submission format mandates the inclusion of ideation, Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and solution details, information about current sweat equity investment, product-market fit status, verifiable go-to-market status, growth feasibility assurances, maturity model, timeliness, and existence of disaster recovery, where applicable.
All applications must be submitted online in accordance with the specified entry format, and there are no associated financial costs for participating in the competition. Importantly, the Commission retains full control and ownership of the intellectual property of the developed solutions.
To submit entries, a Tech Hub or Innovation-Driven Enterprise must provide evidence of their relationship with the startup/solution being entered. Additionally, they should include a 4-page Executive summary of the project concept, a 3-5 minute video of the pilot project, details of all team members (names, ages, contact information, passport photos, and profiles), the website (if available), and an email address for the applicant.
All interested and eligible enterprises are required to submit the requested documents in a zip folder to the following website: https://ncc.gov.ng/talenthuntresearchhackathon2023. The subject of the email should be titled “Submission from <business name>,” and the zipped file should be named after the business.
The Commission wishes to inform the public that the submission deadline has now been extended to September 30, 2023, and encourages active participation from the startup ecosystem.
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