DTC 2026 By The Numbers
The impact of the maiden edition of the Design Thinking Challenge held at Enugu Tech Fest 2026.
Global Reach
1,059
applications received
22
countries across 4 continents
A diverse mix of ideas, from Lagos to London, Nairobi to New York
National Impact
15
states across Nigeria
10%
of applicants from the Southeast region
12
finalist teams selected
Seed Grant & Opportunities
₦30,000,000
seed funding by TDAfrica
₦2,000,000
operation funds by IHSTowers & KingMakers
12
projected startups launched
150+
projected jobs created
100,000+
lives positively impacted
Diversity & Inclusion
<5%
Women-led teams
Teams include students, early-career professionals, and community innovators
Sector Focus
50%
Agriculture
40%
Healthcare
10%
Energy
“Start with people, understand their frustrations, and design solutions that make life easier.”
Focus Areas
Three critical challenges. Infinite possibilities for innovation.
Healthcare
Millions of Nigerians struggle to get timely, affordable, and quality care. We're looking for solutions that bring doctors closer to patients, use technology to diagnose faster, and make healthcare accessible to everyone.
Energy
Reliable electricity isn't a given. Our focus is on clean, affordable, and inclusive energy solutions — from solar mini-grids to smart meters that power homes, schools, and small businesses.
Agriculture
Farmers are feeding the nation but facing low yields and limited market access. Teams will create solutions to boost productivity, increase resilience, and connect farmers to buyers, so small-scale agriculture thrives.
The 5-Phase Journey
Stanford d.school and IDEO-inspired human-centred design frameworks. From deep community empathy to market-ready prototypes in 10 weeks.
Empathy & Define
Immersive community workshops in rural clinics, farms, and off-grid villages.
Ideate
Divergent ideation powered by global design tools and local insight.
Prototype
Rapid hardware + software builds supported by GE Garage, Zoho, and TD Africa.
Test
Real-world field trials with end-users in actual deployment scenarios.
Pitch
Live Demo Day + global livestream judged by African and international investors.
Meet the Winners
Minds turning ideas into impact
HealthDocx
Healthcare“Healthcare that reaches every doorstep.”
HealthDocx is a healthcare data governance platform that helps health institutions gather fragmented health data in one repository for easy access.
Team Members
Terry Isife, Daniel Ogbuji, Kene Orjiene, David Uche, Peace Uchechukwu
Connect Power
Energy“Power for everyone.”
Connect is an offline-first peer to peer energy trading ecosystem. It utilizes low cost smart meters and a USSD payment gateway to allow households with private solar setups to sell excess, stranded energy.
Team Members
Mmerichukwu Anosike, Godsdelight Jude, Victory Ezeji
Smart Circuit
Energy“Smart Metering.”
Meter-man is an online to offline enabled device for monitoring your electricity consumption rate and setting consumption limits in real time. With its AI capabilities the device can predict power usage and consumption patterns for improved power management.
Team Members
Chigbo Mgbemene, Ifediora Chinedu, Nsoke Imelda, Onah Obinna
Other Finalists
Exceptional teams with bold solutions
Grand Tech Solutions
Agrolink is a user-centered solution designed from field research to reduce uncertainty in farmers' market access, pricing, and post-harvest decisions.
Agro Spring
Agro Spring is an affordable, offline-capable smart irrigation system designed specifically for smallholder farmers in Nigeria. It uses an Arduino-based closed-loop control system with capacitive soil moisture sensors to automatically regulate water.
FarmLink
A digital marketplace for farmers experiencing poor marketing structures.
Anbu Gynaecare
We are creating biodegradable sanitary pads from locally sourced plant fibers.
PER KILOWATT 042
A Power Optimization and Management Tool that helps users optimize and monitor their daily power. Also a clean power provider for users to pay as they use and earn carbon credits that's exchanged for cash as incentivization.
RiceMarkt
A WhatsApp-based transparent rice marketplace connecting smallholder rice farmers directly to verified bulk buyers using an admin-managed escrow system.
Verve Health Team
On Demand Healthcare that connects with verified local healthcare professionals for home, virtual, and emergency care.
Eco-AgriQA
A blockchain powered marketplace and supply chain management platform that connects farmers directly to consumers.
MedCore
An offline-first, multilayered EHR system designed for environments with unreliable infrastructure.
Partners
A coalition of global and African institutions driving innovation.
Sponsors
ETF
TDAfrica
IHS Towers
Partners
CafeOne
Microsoft
IBM
Ennovate Ventures
Enugu-State Ministry of Innovation Science and Technology
Judges & Team
The people behind DTC™ driving innovation and impact across Africa.
Judges / Mentors / Coaches
DTC™ Team
Victor Ogbonna
Legal/ProgramsBrian Echeji
PartnershipDamilola Bakare
CommunicationsBenedictta Nnaji
Social MediaJasper Michael
ProgramsJohn Ayuk
EngineeringRidwan Anifowose
Graphics DesignerGifted Chibuikem
Graphics DesignerJoy Okoye
Programs