GABORONE, January 11, 2021: SmartBots, a government initiative under the Digital Implementation Strategy announced the 2021 Virtual Smart Hackathon Challenge targeting citizens only aged between 18 years to 35 years to participate in the development of the mobile Gov App.

The winner of the Hackathon stands a chance to pocket BWP100,000 for providing a working solution for the mobile App at the end of the challenge.

Teams made up of 3-5 people are allowed to register online at skillsranker under Botswana Innovation Hub website ( https://skillsranker.bih.co.bw )in order to participate in the challenge to create a mobile Gov App the can run both on Android and IOS phones.

Registration for the mobile Gov App hackathon challenge opened on the 8th January this past Friday and will close on the 15th of this month to pave way for the challenge which will run from the 18th -21st January 2021. The hackathon will be held virtual or online.

Upon completion, the mobile App should allow citizens to access government services online from their mobile phones. This is in line with the SDG initiative to leave no one behind during the digital transformation.

The hackathon will assist Botswana to be a world leader in the development of digital services for the public sector as it enables innovative spaces for co-creation.

Implementation of the Digital Transformation/4IR Strategy or SmartBots was approved by the Cabinet in February 2020 and kickstarted in October 2020. The Strategy drives the digitization of the public sector and drives Botswana towards a Knowledge-Based Economy. It is aligned to His Excellency the President’s Presidential Transformation Agenda and using Information and Communications Technologies as the driver for economic development and diversification.