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19.12.2017 Career & Money

20-Year-Old KNUST Student Develops App To Improve Sanitation In Ghana

20-Year-Old KNUST Student Develops App To Improve Sanitation In Ghana
19.12.2017 LISTEN

During the long vacation in July this year, Bernice wanted to spend her time putting into practice what she had learnt in school.During that period, she spent three months at Dext Technology, a hardware startup as an intern learning how to code.

With no knowledge in coding, mastering the field and eventually winning an Apps challenge wasn't part of her plan.

"In the course of my internship, I was taught how to test pcb, how to solder, how to use multi-meter and arduino. I was then asked to transform knowledge acquired into a meaningful project," Bernice Agyirakwa Monney, said in an interview with Modernghana.com.

After conducting research on the internet, she settled on the smart bin idea which would give her the opportunity to impact on society.

She readily admits that Michael Afrifa, Charlse Ofori Antepim and the Dext Technology team his been behind the success of her mini project.

She applied for MTN Girl Code and was selected leading her to improve on the smart bin project, creating an app and finally emerging winner.

During this period, she worked wth Doreenda Sika Kotei an IT expert in designing the App

Smart bin project which also includes an app, automatically open and closes when someone approaches it.

It also send the status of the bin to a database to notify that it is full and shows appreciation when someone drops rubbish in it.

The app has been electronically fitted into waste bins to encourage the public on proper waste disposal.

"I hope to finish the smart bin project and open it up to the public to improve sanitary condition in the country," she said.

She was given Ghc2,400 cash prize to complete the project after emerging the winner.

The project is a partnership between Women in Technology Africa and the MTN-Ghana Foundation aimed at equipping young women with basic coding techniques and enable them develop solutions to everyday problems facing our communities.

Bernice Agyirakwa Monney is a student of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology studying Electrical And Electronic Engineering.

Pamela Ofori-Boateng
Pamela Ofori-Boateng

Lifestyle EditorPage: PamelaOforiBoateng

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