As part of its initiative to end early and unintended teenage pregnancy through social change innovative solutions, UNFPA, the United Nations Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Agency, organized the End Teenage Pregnancy HackLab pitch event on 29 August 2023 at Serena Hotel, Kampala.
UNFPA initially launched the End Teenage Pregnancy HackLab in partnership with Outbox Uganda and funding from the Embassy of Sweden on 7 July 2023, to accelerate collective efforts towards ending Early and Unintended Pregnancy in Uganda.
The inception of the End Teenage Pregnancy HackLab was driven by a vision to create a world where communities, including girls and young women, are supported to lead the campaign against early and unintended pregnancy. The HackLab engaged young innovators to scale innovative solutions focusing on the 16 districts of Abim, Amuria, Kaboong, Kaberamaido, Kiryandongo, Kotido, Napak, Nakapiripirit, Pader, Yumbe, Moroto, Gulu, Bundibugyo Kamuli, Mayuge and Kampala.
Deaf Youth Network innovation developers presenting their pitch before a panel of judges at Serena Hotel
The End Teenage Pregnancy HackLab 2023 explores innovations that accelerate efforts towards achieving the three Transformative Results including ending preventable maternal mortality, ending unmet need for family planning and ending sexual and gender-based violence and harmful practices all by 2030, and ensuring protection and fulfilment of girls’ rights. The HackLab targets young innovators who have aspiring solutions that, when taken to scale, can make impactful change for girls at risk of early pregnancy.
The HackLab call received 127 innovations from across the nation. Among these, 25 eligible innovations were chosen to undergo a 3-day boot camp, that not only trained the young innovators based on business prospectus, but also enabled them to refine their ideas, priming them for further shortlisting. Ten (10) selected Innovators showcased their solutions towards ending early and unintended pregnancies in Uganda at The End Teenage Pregnancy HackLab Pitch event.
Four youth innovation groups won seed funding worth USD 10,000 each and another USD 10,000 worth of technical business support including marketing, brand positioning, investment readiness among others.
Bulamu Bridge AI emerged the winners of the HackLab followed by Ndaba Hub, the Diversity Innovations Initiative formerly known as Disability Innovations, and Her Worth Foundation.
Bulamu Bridge AI developed an AI chatbot which has SRHR-oriented features including the menstrual period tracker, personalized contraceptive recommendations, STD/STI information and HIV/AIDS among others.
“We seek to contribute highly to ending early and unintended teenage pregnancy with the USD 10,000 from UNFPA with support from Sweden to implement our innovative solutions in the 16 target districts in Uganda,” said Bridge AI innovators during the pitch event in Kampala Serena Hotel after emerging the winners of the grant.
Ndaba Innovation Hub aims to provide SRHR information access through comic animated books, creating Ndaba peer Clubs to hold teenage girls accountable in the Eastern Region districts of Amuria and Kaberamaido.
Hillary Odeke, one of the Ndaba Innovation Hub's representatives, emphasized the significance of giving credible information for dealing with serious challenges and ensuring that girls make informed decisions about sexual reproductive health.
The high rates of teenage pregnancies in Uganda have been linked to factors such as limited access to reproductive health services, deeply entrenched cultural norms, childhood sexual abuse, high unmet needs for family planning, and child marriage among others.
UNFPA’s Strategic Plan 2022-2025 identified innovations as a key accelerator to meet tomorrow’s challenges and boost its impact, especially in addressing the needs of the population left furthest behind. It is with such HackLabs that we reimagine the delivery of our programmes and spearhead innovative solutions to accelerate progress for women and girls, by disrupting inequalities and removing the barriers between women and girls and their rights and choices.
The Uganda Demographic Health Surveys conducted in 2016, 2011, and 2006 consistently revealed that nearly 58.2% of women aged 20 to 49 began childbearing during their teenage years. Shockingly, the rate of teenage pregnancies in Uganda has remained stagnant at 25% for over a decade.
The innovative solutions presented by the youth during the pitch event, indicate UNFPA’s continued commitment to investing in young people to socially participate in creating solutions towards the much needed equal access to universal sexual and reproductive health and rights, as well as zero early and unintended adolescent pregnancy across the country.
-Written by Emmanete Nabwire and Josephine Zhane
