Call for Proposals to Participate in the Fourth UbuntuNet Alliance for Research and Education Networking Women Hackathon 2026
UbuntuNet Alliance for Research and Education Networking is looking for 45 passionate young women developers, (organised in teams of three) from Eastern and Southern Africa to participate in our 4th Annual Women’s Hackathon. The hackathon seeks to address the gap in innovations supporting climate change adaptation and mitigation, and the gender gap in software applications development in Africa.
Theme: Innovate for climate change adaptation and mitigation
Key Focus Area for projects
Innovations for climate change, adaptation and mitigation - climate change is one of the most pressing global challenges of the 21st century, with far-reaching impacts on ecosystems, economies, and human well-being. Adaptation (adjusting to current and future climate impacts) is crucial for minimizing risks and ensuring sustainable development. The innovations will, therefore, focus primarily on tackling climate change, adaptation and mitigation where participants will be expected to showcase their skills in coming up with solutions to address various climate challenges.
Approach
The hackathon programme shall be in two parts. The first part of the programme shall be conducted virtually where the 15, 3-person teams, competitively selected, shall be guided by academic and industrial experts to develop innovative digital proof-of-concepts solutions tackling climate change mitigation and adaptation challenges. Webinars on topical issues shall also be mounted to impart relevant skills and build confidence among the future women technology leaders. The developed solutions shall provide the teams with innovative proof-of-concepts for them see seek funding for further development and commercialisation. At the end of the virtual programme, the teams shall pitch their solutions.
The top three teams shall be invited to participate in an in-person 3-day hackathon, as a pre-event to the UbuntuNet Connect Conference 2026 in Lilongwe, Malawi in October. The teams shall present their refined concepts as part of the conference programme, where winners shall be announced and feted.
The in-person UbuntuNet Alliance Women Hackathon shall be held on October 26-28, 2026, with all participants also attending the UbuntuNet-Connect Conference (October 29-30, 2026) under the theme “Shaping Digital Horizons” (more detail at https://ubuntunet.net/uc2026/).
Why participate
Participants will get the following benefits: -
· Certificates of participation for all participants
· Travel and accommodation costs fully covered
· Opportunity to attend the UbuntuNet-Connect 2026 Conference in Malawi
· Possibility of internship opportunities with the UbuntuNet Alliance member NRENs
· Linkage to the industry
· Opportunity for Mentorship
How to Apply
We invite concept proposals from teams from eligible countries. The concept note should be 3-5 pages [font Times New Roman, size 12, single spacing], excluding the cover page. It should ideally contain an introduction, a background (or relevance), proposed objectives (leading to development of an ICT solution), methodology (that is based on the software development lifecycle and contains necessary technologies), programming skills of team members, previous experience, links to developed work, education level, year of graduation (past or future). The cover page should have the topic and team member details (names and email address, phone number). The concept note shall be submitted through the online link https://event.ubuntunet.net/event/153/.
Eligibility
· Female participants.
· Pursuing or in possession of a university degree in Software Engineering, Information Technology, Information Systems, Computer Science, or any related field.
· Participants should be students or recent graduates of not more than 5 years.
· Must be from and residing in one of the following countries in the UbuntuNet Alliance Region: Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Comoros, Congo, DR Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
· Must not have participated in a previous UbuntuNet Alliance women hackathon.
Selection Criteria
The concepts will be assessed based on the following criteria:
· Proposed idea solves a problem and fits within the theme.
· The idea being proposed is innovative.
· The team has necessary programming skills to implement the proposed idea.
· Feasibility of the proposed idea.
Deadline for submission: Friday 29th of May 2026
Call for Proposals: 1st of May – 29th of May 2026
Successful applicants will be notified by the 15th of June 2026.
Phase 1: Online Hackathon: 6th of July 2025 – 17th of July 2026.
Successful teams will be notified by the 31st of July 2026
Phase 2: Face-to-Face Hackathon: 26th of October – 28th of October 2026
For inquiry contact: pmo@ubuntunet.net.
About UbuntuNet Alliance for Research and Education Networking
UbuntuNet Alliance for Research and Education Networking serves as an enabler for conducting collaborative research and provision of quality higher education by providing access to the global knowledge community, global digital education and research resources, and cutting-edge applications and infrastructure. The mission of UbuntuNet Alliance is to develop and grow a thriving sustainable community of NRENs and partners within Eastern and Southern Africa, enabling and strengthening collaboration and innovation among Research and Education Communities. More details on the Alliance can be found on our website, https://ubuntunet.net.