AT Innovation and Impact Podcast

This podcast is brought to you by the Global Disability Innovation Hub’s flagship AT2030 programme, funded by UKAid. In this series, we're embarking on a journey through the heart of Africa to explore a world where creativity and technology meet to challenge and change our understanding of disability.

We will spotlight the incredible work of Innovate Now, Africa’s first assistive technology accelerator, and the pioneering spirits behind its success. We’ll uncover how the AT innovation ecosystem in Africa is not just evolving but also revolutionising the way assistive technologies are perceived, developed, and adopted. Innovate Now was co-founded 2019 by the Global Disability Innovation Hub and Bernard Chiira.

Over the years, Innovate Now has been supported by partnerships with GDI Hub’s AT2030 program, ICT Norway and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad). The accelerator has been instrumental in launching and supporting over 60 AT innovators and ventures through more than 600 hours of mentoring and coaching. 

Innovate Now operates on a model that combines expert-led learning, mentorship, and access to 'Live Labs', where products can be tested in real-world environments. The program is designed to create a fit to market, scalable, and investable assistive technologies from Africa​. 

In this podcast, we will speak to:

Bernard Chiira

Bernard is an expert and renowned figure for startup suppert and innovation ecosystem development in Kenya and globally. Prior to founding AT4D, Bernard co-founded and served as Director of Innovate Now Bernard holds a bachelor's degree in business and IT, a master's in mobile telecommunications and innovation, and certifications in venture capital and GIC IX instructor program firm Stanford University.

Ben Hardman

Ben is the head of Innovation and Ecosystems at GDI Hub and a designer and engineer with 20 years’ experience of bringing innovation to market across a variety of sectors and domains such as consumer electronics, sports technology, mobility, retail, social housing, financial inclusion, and assistive technology. Ben’s passion is in applying design thinking to address human, technical and business challenges – all in the pursuit of upgrading the world!

Sylvia Nyaga

Sylvia Nyaga is a social entrepreneur dedicated to creating water and sanitation solutions for persons living with disabilities in Africa through design and innovation. She graduated with a degree in Water and Environmental Engineering from Egerton University and leveraged her skills to fund her social enterprise, Syna Consultancy.

Sylvia was, one of the AT innovators from the Innovate Now program who is tackling one of the most underdiscussed problems globally; that is access to inclusive toilets and sanitation. Sylvia, the founder and CEO of Syna Consulting believes that inclusive sanitation is a basic human right and is fundamental to human wellbeing.

Syna Consultancy is a social enterprise dedicated to providing equitable and inclusive sanitation solutions paying special attention to the needs of those living with mobility disabilities, the elderly & the sick. She has won awards from the Ministry of Water, Irrigation & Sanitation as well as the Kenya National Innovation Agency and is currently a Techwomen fellow.

Brian Mwenda.

In this episode, we have one of the pioneering AT innovators from the Innovate Now program who has spearheaded AT innovation and disability inclusion across Africa and beyond. Brian, the founder and CEO of HopeTech, is a visionary who believes a healthy society is one where everyone participates in everyday activities regardless of their challenges.

Hope Tech Plus Limited is on a mission to unlock the potential of persons with disabilities using Assistive Technologies. For the past eight years, we have focused on building and deploying technologies that empower visually impaired individuals in Africa and beyond, impacting over 10,000 people

Hope Tech creates solutions that enable persons with disabilities to perform everyday tasks independently, enhancing their quality of life and unlocking significant economic and social benefits. With over 300 million blind and visually impaired people worldwide facing considerable challenges in unaided mobility, our innovations are essential for fostering independent living. These individuals often struggle with mobility, which limits their ability to work, study, and engage in social activities.

Over the last three years, we have developed a groundbreaking mobility aid known as the Sixth Sense. This revolutionary device provides blind or visually impaired individuals with the independence and freedom to plan, take, and complete their journeys without reliance on another person. The Sixth Sense was developed through collaborative efforts in Kenya, the UK, Austria, and Australia, ensuring it meets diverse cultural contexts and use cases.