Team GCTU-XI, which competed with two other teams, has emerged as the proud winner of the GEO-Africa Incubator/Accelerator Innovation Challenge 2025 (GAIAthon) GCTU Chapter held on 30th June 2025 at the Tesano campus.
Team Alpha and Team Fiximami placed second and third in the competition, respectively.
The competition, which was organized under the theme “Empowering Africa Youth to Innovate with IOT and Earth Observation,” aimed to build the capacity of African youth by equipping them with practical technology skills to solve real-world environmental and developmental challenges.
In his remarks, the Guest Speaker and Director, GMES and Africa Project at the University of Ghana, Dr. Kwame Adu Agyekum, expressed his excitement at the level of creativity demonstrated by the students. He advised teams to improve their organization and delivery in preparation for competing with other top innovators across Africa.
Speaking at the event, the co-ordinator of the event and Dean of Engineering, Dr. Ruhiya Abubakar, encouraged the participants to be innovative and collaborate to bring out solutions to solve problems. She further urged participants to “put their ideas across for people to see. No one will know the talents inside you unless you bring them out for the world to see.”
In her closing remarks, Dr. Abubakar reinforced the importance of innovation in today’s world. “Innovation is a centre of excellence. As engineering and IT students, your focus should always be on solving social problems by thinking creatively, critically, and communicating your ideas, while collaborating effectively,” she emphasized.
GCTU-XI presented a project on Aqua Sentinel: Smart Water Monitoring Module, focused on water quality and conservation monitoring using IOT technologies. On account of this achievement, the team has earned the honour of representing GCTU at the Continental GAIAthon Competition in Ghana.
This competition follows GCTU’s successful launch of its local chapter earlier in April 2025.
The GAIAthon experience has inspired participating students to embrace innovation and a solution-driven mentality as they prepare to take their projects to the next level on the continental stage.
