Nigerian startup Tuteria wins Royal Academy of Engineering Africa Award

Nigerian online tutoring network Tuteria took home a cash reward of £25,000 after winning the top Engineering Innovation prize at the Royal Academy of Engineering Africa competition.

Tuteria connects students to qualified tutors closest to them. Customers can find any skill they want to learn using the mobile app, they simply set their budget and wait for the nearest tutor to contact them.

The platform also uses a rating system and allows customers to book lessons by paying for them through an upfront payment system. Once the tutors are paid after the lesson has been confirmed, Tuteria takes a commission of 15% to 30% for each paid lesson.

‘Godwin Benson’s invention changes way Nigerians, Africans share knowledge’

Tuteria founder Godwin Benson collected the cash prize at the awards ceremony held in Nairobi last week. Tuteria along with four other finalists had to present their solutions before a panel of judges as well as a live audience who voted for the most promising startup.

Said Benson: “I am so humbled and grateful to the Academy for the training and support. It’s such a vote of confidence to be chosen out of sixteen such incredible businesses – we will do the Africa Prize proud”.

Head judge Malcolm Brinded said in a press release that the Tuteria invention changes the way Nigerians and Africans share knowledge and skills with one another.

“We’re proud to have him as our third Africa Prize winner, and we trust Tuteria will go on to change the lives of millions of people who are eager to learn and develop new skills.

“His engineering innovation is not only new technology but also a new way of thinking about education. Benson has successfully incorporated the training of the past six months into his project, and we are eager to watch Tuteria grow on the continent,” said Brinded.

The 16 companies that were shortlisted for the prize also received six months of training and mentoring which gave the participants enough support to develop business plans as well as market their products and solutions.

The three runners up, who also won a cash prize of £10,000, are:

• GreenTower Microgrid (Andre Nel from South Africa) — Reduces energy used to heat water by 90%. According to the company, a single unit can service 15 homes.
• Yaaka Digital Learning Network (Hindu Nabulumba from Uganda) — Is an online platform where teachers and students can share their academic knowledge as well as materials.
• Mobi-Water System (Kelvin Gacheru from Kenya) — Allows water tank users to both monitor and control their tanks remotely using your mobile phone. According to the company, you can save up to 30% more water.

Applications for the fourth Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation are now open. Individual entrepreneurs or teams living and working in Sub-Saharan Africa dealing with engineering innovation can enter. Deadlines for entries close on 24 July.