The Hack for Big Choices event in Accra, Ghana, originally billed as the largest hackathon ever held in West Africa, eventually turned out to be the largest ever hosted in Africa as a whole.
Disrupt Africa reported in February on the event, hosted by San Francisco-based non-profit Hack for Big Choices, which aimed to find solutions to challenges in the region and offer successful entrepreneurs long-term support.
Facebook, through its Internet.org initiative, and WordPress were the two major sponsors of the hackathon.
Hack for Big Choices said it had expected the event to be the largest hackathon ever in West Africa, but in the end there were 400 general participants, including 215 hackers, from all over the West African region, making it the largest in Africa.
“We were initially expecting to have the biggest hackathon ever in West Africa but then these thirsty entrepreneurs surprised us and it turned out to be the biggest hackathon ever on the entire continent!” Aurora Chiste, chief executive officer (CEO) of Hack For Big Choices, said.
There event also saw international attendees from the United States, Norway, Canada, India, and Italy, with participants including students, consultants, web developers, software developers, healthcare professionals material scientists, clergymen, economists, entrepreneurs, anthropologists, and fashion designers.
