SimuLab and Science Safari wins African Union Education Innovation Award at Africa Skills Week

SimuLab and Science Safari, a virtual science laboratory platform developed by Ghana’s OGames Studio, has emerged as the winner of the African Union Education Innovation Awards at the recently concluded Africa Skills Week in Accra, Ghana.

The innovative platform secured a cash prize of $25,000 after a competitive pitching session, where 10 digital initiatives out of a total of 611 entries were allowed to compete for one of three African Union Education Innovation Awards.

SimuLab and Science Safari are designed to enhance STEM education for students in under-resourced schools across Ghana and Africa, allowing them to conduct virtual experiments in chemistry, physics, and biology on their devices.

Okantey Martin Jairus Nii Okaitey, Co-founder of the platform, expressed his gratitude to the organizers, the Ministry of Education, and everyone who has supported them throughout their journey.

“We are thrilled to receive this recognition and funding, which will propel SimuLab's development and expansion,” he said.

Second place, with a cash prize of $15,000, went to "Storytelling and Digital Tech for Change," a Tanzanian initiative by Tai that uses storytelling to drive social behavioural change and digital skills development.

The third prize of $10,000 was awarded to NABU Multilingual App and Web Reader, a multinational initiative that creates original children’s stories in mother-tongue languages.

During the closing ceremony of the Africa Skills Week, Ghana’s Minister for Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, delivered an inspiring message, encouraging all attendees to take action and aspire for greatness.

“Every one of us has our moment. The most important thing is how you seize the moment. So I want to encourage you: aspire for greatness. Seize the moment. Change your country, and change Africa," he said.

The Africa Skills Week conference was hosted by the Government of Ghana in partnership with the African Union. It received support from Germany through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), as well as the International Labour Organization (ILO), UNESCO, the World Bank, Ghana’s Commission for TVET (CTVET), and Ghana’s Ministry of Education, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration.