The Royal Academy of Engineering in the UK has awarded its 2026 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation to Mamane Kabirou Ousseini, a Nigerien engineer, for his Likita Care medical monitoring platform. Ousseini is the first Nigerien to participate in and win the competition. He received a prize of 50,000 pounds sterling and will receive support to expand his innovation to other African countries.
Likita Care is a medical monitoring platform that combines connected equipment, clinical software, and local digital manufacturing. The platform's devices enable patient monitoring, cardiac and prenatal care, and a dashboard allows healthcare personnel to track multiple patients at once. An artificial intelligence module helps interpret vital signs in real-time. The equipment is designed to be easily repaired locally.
The idea for Likita Care was born out of a need identified in Nigerien hospitals, where imported medical equipment often breaks down and is difficult to repair due to a lack of spare parts and local expertise. According to the Academy, over 70 units of Likita Care have been produced and deployed in Niger, in five medical centers, and the solution has been tested on over 100 patients.
Three other finalists received 10,000 pounds each: Dyllon Randall from South Africa for Pee-Cycling, a system for converting urine into fertilizer; Alice Muhuhu from Kenya for MoyoECG, a portable electrocardiograph; and Naom Monari from Kenya for Renal Roads, a mobile dialysis clinic. The "One to Watch" prize, awarded by public vote, went to Johannes Amo-Aye from Ghana for a hybrid wind turbine for off-grid microgrids.
A Senegalese innovator, Moustapha Diop, was among the 16 preselected finalists for his Jangalma platform, an AI-powered educational platform offering resources and private lessons to secondary school students in French-speaking Africa. In 2021, Ivorian Noël N'guessan won the prize with KubeKo, low-cost equipment for treating agricultural biowaste.
The Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation is an annual competition that recognizes and supports innovative engineering solutions in Africa. The prize aims to promote engineering innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa and provide support to winners to scale their solutions across the continent.
Ousseini's win is a significant achievement for Niger and highlights the importance of engineering innovation in addressing local challenges. His Likita Care platform has the potential to improve healthcare outcomes in Niger and other African countries, and the support he receives will help him expand his impact.
Key points
- Mamane Kabirou Ousseini is the first Nigerien to win the Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation.
- Likita Care is a medical monitoring platform designed to be manufactured and repaired locally.
- The Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation aims to promote engineering innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa.
