Students who made viable innovations
- Technology
It has been said that creativity thrives in a disciplined environment and this has been seen from two 18-year-old Form Four students, a further intrinsic drive to provide homegrown solutions to local problems, has seen them elevated at the local and global fronts.
They were part of researchers drawn from secondary schools, polytechnics, technical training institutions, universities, research bodies who showcased their work at an annual science feat. The duo presented an automobile detector for use in public service vehicles to detect weapons, standing passengers and those who fail to wear a safety belt prompting an immediate response from the driver or the traffic police nearby.
Wallace Kahiga and Samuel Warui from Kaheti Secondary School presented their innovation at the National Commission for Science, Technology and Innovation Science week, only a fortnight after returning from Delaware in the US where they represented Kenya in a global entrepreneurial competition where they emerged second.
Their journey started at the county level of the Science Congress to the national level held in June last year at Machakos Boys High School where they emerged second. Themed, ‘The role of Science and Technology in the post 2015 Development agenda,’ the week-long meeting in Nairobi this week sought to unlock the potential of quality research and promote its use to enhance socioeconomic development.
Many may ask what drove them to develop the car detector? “Kenya is faced with insecurity incidences thus we developed a detector to improve security searches before passengers board vehicles,” says Warui. Their innovation was rated second countrywide.
The device is placed permanently in a vehicle or a building. “We want to restore sanity in our public transport system so we came up with this equipment that whenever any of the odd situations take place in the car, sends a message to the driver and transmits a signal to the nearest police officer who promptly responds to it,” Kahiga told The Standard on Saturday at the Science Week hosted by the University of Nairobi.
Warui says the enforcement of this rule will require goodwill of both commuter and driver to inculcate a culture of safety-first on our roads. Automobile detector Some materials used to make the automobile detector include an electric toy car, lead acid accumulator, dry cells, signal transmitter, copper plates and other materials estimated to cost about Sh100,000 funded by their school administration.
Their teachers appreciate them as self-motivated young innovators and patriots whose desire is to provide a solution to the security situation in the country. “We have worked on this project for three years compounding it annually to make it effective and adoptable by the concerned bodies in the transport and internal security sectors,” said their principal Paul Karenju.
Another teacher who supported them and also traveled with them to the US is Peninah Waigwa whom they appreciate for entrepreneurial guidance. The pair also traveled to US a fortnight ago to showcase their novelty. The Diamond Challenge for High School entrepreneurs is a business concept competition with an educational purpose where participating students work in teams and present their concept to a panel of entrepreneurs who are the judge.
Viable career Developed by a coalition of partners to provide high school students with an outstanding opportunity to explore entrepreneurship as a viable career path, the Diamond Challenge helps the young innovators and researchers acquire valuable knowledge and skills for application in their local environments to solve problems. They hope their innovation will be adopted by relevant bodies including the National Transport and Safety Authority, Matatu Owners Association to foster safety and alertness among Kenyans.
Reference : www.standardmedia.co.ke