She started the business ten years ago after getting some money from her husband. She makes boxes which are commonly used for storing purposes. She has managed to stay afloat in this male dominated industry due to her hard work and determination. The proceeds from this activity has enabled her to help her husband in contributing towards their daily needs.
The role of immune responses in atherosclerosis has been the focus of increasing scientific investigation. It is now understood that the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis is modulated by the balance between opposing immune responses, i.e, athero-protecting and athero-promoting. CardioVax’ lead product (CVX-210-H) has been formulated to blunt the athero-promoting responses and to heighten the athero-protecting responses. In the well established animal model, CVX-210-H has been shown to reduce the progression of atherosclerosis by more than 60% in treated animals versus untreated animal
The objective of ARIST is to help existing African institutions and students to achieve excellence in science and technology that can lead to sustainable economic development and self reliance in Africa. This is being achieved by bringing leading African scientists, engineers, humanists and entrepreneurs to teach and engage in education and research at African institutions that are designated ARIST centers of excellence.Wole hopes
...that his initiative to bring academics from different African countries together, will strengthen existing universities and generate new programs to train the next generation of scientists and engineers to address Africa's particular problems. "If you have a strong scientific culture," Soboyejo said, "you will develop smart people who will have an impact on society."More here
"...build a robust renewable energy market by increasing demand and supply of renewable products; promote the idea that environmentally based renewable energy and energy efficiency programs are the key components for sustainable growth and sustainable future..."
Image of Lego Mindstorms robot
...programs have some common themes: how can we get children to exercise their creative muscle; how can we get children to draw the connections between scientific and artistic concepts, how can we get children to work in a more collaborative fashion and how can we do this in an spirit of fun, openness and innovation.
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...is to help the diffusion of semiconductor, microelectronics, nanotechnology, biotechnology and other emerging technologies in developing nations (especially Africa nations) by supporting schools, SMEs (small and medium enterprises) and governments through world class education support and technical consulting.
The Bambulance, a human (or animal) propelled gurney meant to transfer the sick or injured across rural terrain...it is made mostly from bamboo poles, meaning it can be made by hand with locally grown stock, and can be pulled by a person on foot, on bicycle, or even by a donkey. The design is currently being produced in Nairobi by two organizations...
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The O twins is a Nigerian animated series from Fusion Media for the Nigerian population. The O Twins follows a Nigerian family as they go about their Nigerian family daily stuff...The series will be in 'Nigerian local type English'More here
In Jenny's Catering founded by Jennifer Akuamoa Students are invited from every part of the country to learn the culinary skills necessary to enable each one to cook professionally. In response to the ever-increasing demand for culinary skills, Jenny`s School of Catering has developed a number of courses to aid the beginner, part-time student and the housewife.
With the laying of the foundation stone of the International Cancer Centre Abuja and the soon to be completed Justice Adolphus Karibi-Whyte Specialist 1000 bed Hospital Port Harcourt could it be that Nigeria is about to leave the starting blocks of reform of its ailing health care sector. I am delighted to see where private hospitals like the Lagoon Hospitals and Reddington Hospital (covered earlier) are currently taking Nigerian health care.
Why do some schools turn out successful students while others seem to languish? What’s the ‘key’ tactic to engaging young people? Why are is there such a disparity between facilities in different parts of the world and this country?
Last week on Huffington Post, Tom Vander Ark wrote and article that struck a chord with me because of the work I’m doing at Appfrica Labs. I had no desire to run a school, but I value education a great deal as posts like “10,000 African Hours” should indicate. Tom suggest that there are four main traits he can identify in successful innovators...[continue reading]
Africa Start-Up Challenge "...a program which boosts internet and mobile startup companies in Ivory Coast..."While the more global
...Startup Weekend recruits a highly motivated group of developers, business managers, startup enthusiasts, marketing gurus, graphic artists and more to a 54 hour event that builds communities, companies and projects...The participants that attend a Startup Weekend decide what they want to tackle over the weekend and come out at the end with several developed companies or projects. Attendees are responsible for bringing the same desire and passion to the project and walk out of the room with the task at hand, in a short 54 hours.
As a follow-up to the invigorating inaugural Maker Faire Africa 2009. The organizing team has announced a number of initiatives to harness the momentum and energy felt at the Accra event. They are:
- Maker Faire 2010 Nairobi, Kenya
- A build-a-MultiMachine prize
- An inaugural Maker prize to be launched at MFA 2010
- A Maker Directory for participants in MFA 2009
Please stay tuned to the MFA blog for further details on these and other exciting developments.
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The Invisible Schoolhouse will serve as an online knowledge center for students, entrepreneurs, government officials and development practitioners to share clean energy business development information. Knowledge sharing will take place through web 2.0 features like chat forums, webinars, video conferencing and more. The end goal is to increase a pipeline of small and growing energy businesses in developing countries and to bring together the different stakeholders working toward that end.
In 2008 Robert 'Rkay' Kamanzi won an award from Creative Economy for Musical Entrepreneurship:Robert demonstrates outstanding discipline and tenacity. He is a passionate advocate for the power of music, and has the capacity to act as an advocate across business, social, educational and political perspectives. He also showed a real commitment to his region. He is an award winning music producer, with a proven track record as both an entrepreneur and as a champion for the development of the music industry in Kenya.more here
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More hereGardens for Life promotes partnerships between schools, children and teachers to share all the learning that can come from gardening and growing food across communities, cultures and countries...The “Gardens for Life” initiative seeks to embed the most fundamental of issues, food and nutrition, within the education curriculum by maximising the use of schools gardens and make gardening an attractive activity and a source of income for the school. The foodstuff produced can be sold locally after feeding the students.
For each bar sold, Original Beans guarantees that Original Beans’ conservation corps plants one tree in the area of your chocolate’s origin. We work to preserve and promote both, old growth primary as well as newer producer forests which add to the rich biodiversity of the region. Our goal is to ensure that our rainforests, and the world’s finest beans, will be around for future generations.
The BBC reports on two student Makers:Jeremiah Murimi, 24, and Pascal Katana, 22, said they wanted their dynamo-powered "smart charger" to help people without electricity in rural areas..."The device is so small you can put it in your pocket with your phone while you are on your bike," said Mr Murimi...The two electrical engineering students from Nairobi University have been working on their own invention, which they are selling for 350 Kenyan shillings ($4.50) each, over the last few months during their university break.
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Image via Wikipedia
The Typha plant has the potential to be more sustainable alternative for the production of charcoal.Irin news reports:The “green charcoal” is produced by compressing agricultural waste, like the invasive typha weed, into briquetts and then carbonising them using a machine. The product has the look and feel of traditional charcoal and burns similarly.
“The technology is efficient, effective and economical because we can produce a substitute for charcoal at half the price,” Guy Reinaud, director of Pro Natura International, the French NGO that has partnered with the Senegalese government on the green charcoal project...[more here]
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IDDS (a Maker Faire Africa sponsor)reporting from Suame Magazine:Crossman(of Suame Magazine) himself gave us an introduction into the history behind the Intermediate Technology Transfer Unit (I.T.T.U.) and how the centre came into existence. He told us that we were still “on KNUST soil” and the collaboration between these ingenious artisans from Suame and eager students from the University is perhaps the defining feature of Kumasi, and a small example of how co-creation can work at a localized level. The I.T.T.U. functions as a go-between in a sense as a means of making sure that technologies and techniques developed at the University make their way into the community.
The International Development Design Summit is put on by Amy Smith and her students at MIT. This year it took place in Kumasi, Ghana – which will be followed by Maker Faire Africa this weekend in Accra, where some of their work will be shown.
Here’s a quick list of the projects they have been working on over the last five weeks:
- A press that speeds up the process of extracting oil from shea nuts
- A device for generating electricity from a playground carousel
- A machine for making recycled plastic products from used water sachets
- A set of tools for threshing groundnuts
- A mechanism for producing chlorine from salt water using readily available materials
- A simple, low cost battery made from local materials, for household lighting and other uses
- A human powered grating machine for speeding up cassava processing
- A thresher to improve the quality of rice by preventing stones from mixing with the grains
- A chlorine dispenser for disinfecting drinking water
- A family friendly latrine designed to promote use and hygiene among young children
- A device for monitoring the growth of children under five through cell phone technology
- A container that extends the shelf life of tomatoes during transport and storage
The main difference between IDDS Ghana and IDDS in MIT is the proximity to community partners and potential end users of the projects. IDDS prides itself on the spirit of co-creation and this movement from the States to Africa is a crucial one in line with this vision. The difference between participants sitting in lecture halls in MIT, learning about international development and the importance of speaking to at least fifty villagers before designing a technology, and actually living with and talking to hundreds of villagers all over the country, is immeasurable. In total IDDS this year worked with ten villages throughout the Bromg – Ahafo and Ashanti regions and teams had the chance to make three separate two night visits (spread throughout the design process to make sure they had input into every stage) to these villages. Among a huge number of other factors, the simple experience of having end users actually become extremely excited about your prototype, and seeing them test it out, is an incentive for teams to continue their project after IDDS.More here
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Njeri Wangari in Global Voices:‘Digital' has become the latest buzz word not just in Kenya but in Africa where most things are still analogue. However, Digital Art is a rather new term to even the most seasoned art aficionados...With all these emerging African Digital Artist, it is undeniable that technology is redefining African Art in a way we never imagined possible.
more hereBugLabs has created the ultimate high-tech hacker device, which they call “modular, open source hardware”. After talking to Peter Semmelheck, CEO of BugLabs, he was very excited about the idea of some Ghanaian programmers taking a crack at his device.
...the first Panafrican, bilingual and independent TV channel broadcasting throughout the continent via satellite...
via Global Health Ideas...the company focuses on the research, development and manufacture of innovative diagnostic and biopharmaceutical products, first targeted to large emerging “frontier” markets in Africa, then to Asia and South America...they intend to address certain urgent healthcare needs of people in the emerging target economies by matching novel biotechnologies to existing healthcare needs, and then developing and commercializing these relevant technologies to meet those needs.
"...The aims of Victory Community Gardens are: To provide vegetables and food to the community, to empower the participants with knowledge and skills so that they can increase on their household income in order to reduce poverty, disease and ignorance and to teach and guide the participants with knowledge which can help to overcome social economic beliefs that prevent progress and innovation. Finally, to share the produce with the poor and others who may be in desperate need of food..."![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=5095a2ef-7822-4b70-a324-77a941d1818c)
Using a charging system he made himself, Mr. Acheampong, one of the Abusuapanin Community Leader’s in Bonsaaso village, use’s 4 C dry cell batteries to charge mobile phones. The four 1.5V batteries in series adds up to 6V which is similar to the 5.5V that most cell phones require (amperage varies). The set of batteries cost 1 Ghana Cedi and he is able to charge four phones before needing to replace the batteries. This compares to the 1 Cedi cost of charging a phone at the local cell tower...[continue reading]
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Hash blogs about some of the don't miss attractions of the upcoming Maker Faire Africa:I’ll be in Ghana next week to help with the final preparations for Maker Faire Africa, taking place August 14-16 in Accra, with the rest of the organizing team. It’s looking to be quite the event with many Ghanian Makers, as well as some from Kenya, Liberia and Malawi. The FabLab teams from Ghana and Kenya will both be showing what they’ve been building, as well as some of the teams from the IDDS event.
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Kenya Data Networks, has opted to solve their energy problems by tapping the power of the sun. The KDN solar power plant generates 10MW of power, enough to buffer it from fluctuations in the grid which result in frequent brown outs. Last year, the cost of electricity increased by over 51% so its not only good for the environment, but I am sure it makes a whole lot of sense for the balance sheet of KDN. From the video they are already saving 50% on their electricity bill, I think this is a good example to other companies that they too can embrace renewable energy. Now if only Kengen could make plans to create a smart grid that allows netmetering…
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Kazang, is a prepaid terminal for merchants selling mobile phone services, such as prepaid airtime, paying of electricity bills or insurance. The service is a year and a half old now, and boasts nearly 5,000 vendors ranging from South Africa to Kenya to Zambia.
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...tells the dramatic story of Ethiopian economist an attempt to end hunger in her famine-plagued country. Her daring solution, the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange, must overcome a world of difficulties if it is to survive its first, grueling year
