Four young Kenyan women have emerged as the overall winners of the third edition of the GirlCode Kenya Hackathon held at Konza Technopolis.
The two-day event, organised by Absa Bank Kenya, GirlCode and the Technopolis Development Authority, brought together 44 young women, including students, graduates, developers and aspiring entrepreneurs, to develop technology solutions to real-world challenges.
The winning team, comprising Mary Wangui, Linet Mugwanja, Aisha Barasa and Cynthia Chepkorir, impressed judges with Naulisako, an artificial intelligence-powered digital fare collection platform.
The platform is designed to streamline public transport payments, automate reconciliation for vehicle owners and generate sales records to improve efficiency, transparency and financial tracking.
The Bots team emerged first runners-up with Biashara Bot, a solution that digitises and automates financial record-keeping for small businesses, particularly those that are underserved or unbanked.
Korva Creatives Economy finished third with a platform that brings together creator revenues, engagement data and intellectual property monetisation across multiple channels.
Speaking on behalf of the winning team, Ms Mugwanja said the victory demonstrated the role young women can play in developing technology solutions.
“Winning the GirlCode Kenya Hackathon affirms that young women have an important role to play in shaping the future of technology. Naulisako was inspired by everyday challenges in the public transport sector, and we are proud to have developed a solution that can make payments more efficient, transparent and accessible,” she said.
The top three teams received laptops, tablets, Bluetooth speakers, headsets and inspirational books.
GirlCode chief executive Zandile Mkwanazi said the partnership with Absa Bank Kenya was helping create opportunities for young women to develop technology skills and solutions.
“Kenya has one of the most exciting innovation ecosystems on the continent, and we are proud to continue our partnership with Absa Bank Kenya for a third year while also welcoming Konza Technopolis as a venue partner,” she said.
Absa Bank Kenya chief information officer Moses Okundi said the initiative was part of the bank’s efforts to promote digital inclusion and youth empowerment.
He said digital skills and access to technology were important in expanding economic opportunities for young people.
The Technopolis Development Authority provided mentorship and technical support and hosted the hackathon at Konza Technopolis.
Josephine Ndambuki, the authority’s chief manager for business development and innovation, said the event would help more young women develop their skills and pursue careers in technology and innovation.
Kenya was the sixth and final stop of this year’s GirlCode Pan-African Hackathon Series, following events in South Africa, Tanzania, Ghana, Botswana and Uganda.
The series is part of GirlCode’s goal of reaching 10 million girls and women across Africa by 2030 through coding programmes, mentorship, hackathons and digital skills development.
The Pan-African winners will be announced on October 12, 2026. The winning team will receive R100,000, approximately Sh790,655, while the winning small and medium-sized enterprise will receive incubation support to scale its solution.
Absa Bank Kenya said its participation in the programme was part of its broader efforts to equip young people, particularly women, with skills needed to participate in the digital economy.
