Online Hackathon to Fight COVID-19 in Cambodia, Concludes: #HacKHtheCrisis

Organized in just one week, an online hackathon to rapidly build solutions to challenges related to COVID-19 concluded this weekend, called #HacKHtheCrisis.

Bringing together over 200+ participants who took part, the hackathon focused on challenges submitted by the general public (e.g. NGOs, families, individuals out of work & school, SMEs…) and inspired by ideas that have been developed across the world to fight the virus. Over 79 challenges and ideas were submitted, and 55+ mentors volunteered their time to work with the teams.

After hacking for 48 hours, 35+ solutions were developed and submitted to the organisers, which cover topics such as wellbeing, agriculture, SME support, healthcare, medical support community support, and access to information.

This is just the beginning – we used this hackathon format to facilitate collaboration, connections, and inspiration to build things- but of course, plenty of people have already got started- that’s why we plan to put all solutions, initiatives, innovations, related to COVID19 on a public AirTable, to map everything happening, and act as a ‘touchpoint’ for quickly connecting with the initiatives you can support, join, or share with others.Olivia Hough, Managing Director of Impact Hub Phnom Penh.

The organising committee was Impact Hub Phnom Penh, Slash Foundry, and NIPTICT, and was supported by Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport and Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. The Minister of Education even posted an inspiring video on his Facebook page to encourage others to join.

We didn’t want to run a hackathon to ignite ideas that then get forgotten once the event ends. Luckily, we’ve already seen significant supporters in the ecosystem willing to contribute to this challenge [of COVID19] and we hope that means we’ll see some great new initiatives emerge and thrive in the coming weeks, that ultimately save lives and businesses.Andries, CEO of Slash Foundry.

I am very proud to be part of this amazing event. Thank you, organizers, for this Hackathon, great job! It’s a great idea to create this online discussion, using online tools to gather innovators from not only Cambodia but across the globe to share experiences and creative ideas in solving current and emergency crises.Participant of the Hackathon.

Here’s a snapshot of some of the solutions that came out of the weekend:

COVID-19 Broadcast Solution:

A portal for social media broadcasting of COVID-19 news to be used as the official source of information on the subject, by the Cambodian government.

Kampu Sokha:

Aims to reduce the spread and fear of COVID-19 by providing a way of reliable self-diagnosis, map, news and monitoring.

COVID-19 Schedule:

A portal that allows people to reserve their place in the queue for being tested for COVID-19.

COVID Farmer Hack:

Aims to help farmers deal with the loss of income and food security during this crisis.

606:

COVID-19 Video Series of “The Good Things That Happen” in this catastrophe, such as kindness, invention, new policies and cooperation to prevent the spread from every individual.

MeetDoctor:

Telehealth app connecting patients to doctors from home.

ArrowDot:

Is working on a Respiratory-Help Machine that will assist patients to breathe more easily while their lungs are weak for oxygen.

AgriSmart:

Is working on a cheap and accessible protective face shield made of bamboo for local people and hopefully healthcare practitioners too.

TraceSave:

An app that uses Bluetooth to alert users if they had close contact with a COVID-19 case.

Healthy Home:

Self Quarantine App – Self-quarantine app for self-monitor and food recommendations for the immune system.

Find all the solutions here.: bit.ly/solutionsKH

Find the images of HacKH The Crisis here

Find all the videos pitches here.

For more information about the hackathon:

Follow the Facebook page
Check out the website here
Fill in this form if you’d like to be sent regular updates

About the organisers:

Impact Hub Phnom Penh

Is a social enterprise and community for young, impact-focused entrepreneurs, innovators and leaders, with a goal to inspire and enable the next generation of leaders to build businesses that contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals. Their active and growing community has supported over 600 entrepreneurs since its inception in 2015.

For more information please contact: Olivia Hough olivia.hough@impacthub.net

Slash

Is a hi-tech Startup Studio with a mission to build tech products that empower the people & planet. Their clients are global. In addition, they build and invest our own startups and commercialize them through joint ventures in ASEAN and Europe. They work on a wide range of technologies: web, mobile, AI, blockchain, cloud, microservices & middlewares, etc. They also own/run a social startup called Startup Jungle with the main mission to inspire and enable the tech ecosystem.

Pisethneat Pich (Nick), nick@slash.co

National Institute of Posts, Telecoms, and ICT

NIPTICT is a research and training institute founded by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications of Cambodia (MPTC). NIPTICT built with three missions to accomplish:

Provision of quality Higher Education and Professional Training;
Research and advancement of knowledge.
Innovation and entrepreneurship for better academic and society services.

For more information please contact: Mr Be Chantra chantra.be@nitpict.edu.kh