mLab has claimed 2nd place in the category “Lab Supporting Grassroots Innovators” at the 2024 Grassroots Innovation Awards. The awards are an initiative of the Department of Science, Technology, and Innovation (DSTI) and its entity, the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA).

With the aim of celebrating grassroots innovators whose technologies and solutions drive  socio-economic development and job creation, the event took place alongside the 2024 Science Forum South Africa held at the CSIR International Convention Centre in Pretoria on 5 December 2024. 

This award is an acknowledgement of mLab’s continued commitment to empowering technology-driven grassroots innovation and fostering creativity amongst South African youth and communities. “A huge thank you to our incredible team, partners, and the passionate innovators that we support! This award inspires us to continue building a thriving digital innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem across the continent,” said mLab’s CEO Nicoli Koorbanally. 

Two alumni of mLab’s enterprise development programme, Vusumuzi Ngobese and Keletso Lekwakwe were nominated in the Social Innovation Award category. Ngobese is the Founder of Hikelift, a project that falls under Syntaxera, a problem-solving software development company that was incubated by mLab. Hikelift promotes the driver’s and passenger’s safety when hitchhiking. Lekwakwe is the Founder of PasswordKid,  a child safety company offering child safety innovative technologies. 

We are incredibly proud to announce that Lekwake won 1st place and Ngobese took 3rd place in the Social Innovation category. These innovators symbolise the remarkable talent and resilience that exists in our communities and the awards give kudos to those who are driving change from the ground up. mLab’s skills and enterprise development programmes are supported by the DSTI, TIA, and provincial partners including the Northern Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism, The Innovation Hub, the Imbali Education and Innovation Precinct, and Limpopo Connexion. 

These stakeholders invest in the development of advanced digital skills, and innovative technology solutions developed by our youth to tackle real-world challenges. Awards such as these on such a prestigious platform give due recognition to hard work and the impact that our youth are making in their communities.