NCC Challenges Innovators to Build Inclusive Tech

The Nigerian Communications Commission has challenged young innovators to develop affordable and scalable technology solutions that can remove barriers preventing persons with disabilities and other underserved Nigerians from participating fully in the digital economy.

The Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management at the NCC, Rimini Makama, made the call on Wednesday at the opening of the fourth NCC Hackathon Live Show in Abuja.

The event, themed “Technology Without Barriers,” brings together young innovators to develop technology-driven solutions to challenges affecting digital inclusion.

Makama, who was represented by the NCC Director of Zonal Operations, Usman Malah, said persons with disabilities continued to face difficulties accessing communication services, education, healthcare, financial services, employment opportunities and government platforms.

She said the situation required technology designed around the realities of Nigerians rather than sophisticated products that remained inaccessible to the people they were intended to serve.

“Do not simply focus on developing impressive technologies. Focus on creating solutions that are simple to use, affordable to deploy, scalable across communities, and capable of improving the quality of life of millions of Nigerians.”

The two-day hackathon, which began on Wednesday and ends on Thursday, focuses on areas including artificial intelligence, assistive technology, voice-enabled communication, sign-language recognition, accessible digital services and inclusive employment platforms.

The NCC said the initiative was designed to generate practical and scalable solutions to technology access and digital inclusion challenges, particularly those affecting persons with disabilities and underserved communities.

Makama said the programme reflected the commission’s commitment to ensuring that technological advancement translated into wider economic participation.

“The true measure of technological advancement lies not only in the sophistication of our innovations, but in the extent to which they improve lives, expand opportunities, and empower every member of society to participate meaningfully in the digital economy.”

NCC promotes homegrown solutions

Speaking at the event, the Director of the Digital Economy Department at the NCC, Helen Obi, said the programme was designed to encourage homegrown solutions for persons with disabilities and Nigerians living in rural communities who remain excluded from parts of the digital economy.

She said the commission was particularly interested in technologies capable of overcoming barriers linked to disability, language, literacy, income and geographical location.

Obi said participants were expected to explore low-bandwidth and offline-first services that could operate in remote communities without requiring constant internet connectivity or sophisticated devices.

“We are having a solution that will be developed with low bandwidth, offline-first digital services suitable for remote rural operations.”

She identified focus areas including AI-powered speech-to-text and real-time sign-language translation, voice-enabled systems, accessible USSD services for non-smartphone users, image-to-voice navigation and inclusive job-matching platforms for persons with disabilities.

Twenty solutions were expected to be presented on the first day, addressing challenges in healthcare, education, emergency communication, electricity services, employment and digital commerce.

Among the entries was ADITUS, which proposes using USSD and SMS to provide access to the NCC’s 112 emergency service for people unable to make voice calls.

ClearSignal was designed to provide accessible electricity outage alerts to blind, visually impaired and deaf users, while SignBridge AI seeks to improve communication between deaf patients and healthcare providers.

Other solutions include E-Novate, an AI-powered application designed to translate Nigerian Sign Language into spoken and written English in hospitals; Sora, an inclusive job-matching platform for persons with disabilities; and Kasuwa, which seeks to enable Nigerians to start and operate online businesses through phone calls without smartphones, data or screens.

Obi said the entries would be assessed based on innovation, accessibility, relevance, technical feasibility, scalability, affordability, sustainability and indigenous value addition.

The NCC said promising solutions could receive further support for development, pilot deployment and expansion.

The hackathon continues on Thursday, with five finalists expected to pitch their solutions before judges before certificates and cash prizes are presented to winners and participants.