Nairobi Students Build Innovative Apps in Annual Tech Challenge

Nearly 5,000 students from more than 1,000 schools nationwide, including many from Nairobi, are participating in Tech Challenge Kenya 2025, a hands-on engineering and innovation competition that tasks young learners with solving real-world problems. This year’s theme, Drop & Dash , challenges students to design a device that can survive an air-drop and deliver supplies to a specific target—without using batteries.
Launched by The Tech Interactive (a science and technology museum in Silicon Valley), the Kenyan edition of the challenge trains local educators through a train-the-trainer model so they can mentor their own students. The student teams submit videos, journals, and prototypes which are judged by a panel drawn from academia, industry, and NGOs. Beyond building devices, participants learn design thinking, teamwork, and the iterative problem-solving process—skills central to STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) education.
Feedback from schools has been overwhelmingly positive. Teachers say the challenge empowers students who don’t normally have access to high-end labs or tech resources to build functioning prototypes using everyday materials. Students report feeling a deep sense of accomplishment as they convert abstract physics and engineering concepts into working solutions. Parents, meanwhile, have noted a marked improvement in their children’s confidence, perseverance, and ambition.
Looking ahead, organizers hope to scale Tech Challenge Kenya even further, engaging more schools in Nairobi’s informal settlements and underserved regions. Plans include setting up local innovation clubs, strengthening partnerships with tech companies, and making the challenge a regular part of school curricula. If this growth continues, Nairobi could emerge as a national hub for youth-driven technological innovation and problem-solving.