A total of 19 apps jostled for the top spot at the Vodafone-backed MEST’s maiden Hackathon where the Drug Verification app. CheckIt emerged winner, cashing in the GH¢5,000 (US$1,500) top prize.
Foremost Ghanaian Incubator, MEST partnered Vodafone to host the two-day long hackathon themed around “Using the Power of Technology to Simplify Lives”, with quest for solutions in health, security, lifestyle, entertainment, and transportation.
According to a report on Disrupt africa, “Vodafone Ghana and MEST said they aimed to use the hackathon to raise awareness and provide answers that will become benchmarks in simplifying lives.”
The winning app was developed by Hambau Abdulai Yaya, Samuel Amoah and Benjamin Kiss, to help local drug brands avert piracy and protect consumers from using counterfeit drugs. It works by scanning barcodes embedded on the drugs’ packaging to verify its genuineness.
Road Mates, an app which gives real time traffic update, taxi fares and other easy-commute services, came in second to bag a GH¢3, 000 (US$870) cash prize.
Image via: devcongress
