In a significant collaborative effort with EMTECH Solutions Inc., the Bank of Ghana has unveiled the eCedi Innovation Challenge, a dynamic hackathon aimed at fostering innovation within the realm of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). This initiative opens doors for Fintechs, developers and innovators to pioneer inventive solutions exploring diverse use cases for the eCedi.
The event, aptly named the ‘eCedi Hackathon’, is set to span a 12-week period, during which innovators will engage in intensive brainstorming to address the prevailing financial inclusion challenges in Ghana. It serves as a prominent platform for developers, innovators and blockchain enthusiasts to demonstrate their creative prowess by exploring the vast potential of CBDC technology, thereby contributing to the evolution of Ghana’s digital financial ecosystem. The culmination of this endeavour will be a conference where standout solutions will be honoured in an award ceremony.
A hackathon, characterised by its time-bound, collaborative and high-intensity nature, brings together individuals or teams from diverse backgrounds to collaboratively work on creative and innovative projects, often revolving around technology, software development or problem-solving.
This project is an integral component of the eCedi research initiative, offering the Bank of Ghana an opportunity to delve into emerging technologies, stimulate creativity and contribute to the advancement of eCedi development.
The primary objectives of the eCedi Innovation Challenge are as follows:
- Encourage local developers to demonstrate their creative prowess by fostering collaboration and generating innovative solutions that address financial inclusion challenges utilising the eCedi.
- Facilitate knowledge sharing on CBDC among the Bank of Ghana, banks and payment service providers.
- Foster networking and collaboration opportunities with other organisations and software developers operating within the CBDC domain.
The proposed innovations are expected to leverage eCedi tokens and APIs to prototype solutions or develop tools catering for various use cases, such as:
- Utilising eCedi in merchant transactions (C2B)
- Employing eCedi for government payments (G2P, P2G)
- Harnessing eCedi in agriculture and trade (C2B, B2B)
- Ensuring data privacy during eCedi transactions
- Utilising eCedi for inbound remittances
- Combating the illicit use of eCedi
- Enhancing eCedi interoperability
- Exploring KYC models for eCedi
- Investigating models for cross-border payments and transactions
Registration for the eCedi Innovation Challenge commences on October 3, 2023, with applications set to open on October 6, 2023. The Bank of Ghana extends an open invitation to individuals and teams interested in embarking on this journey to discover novel ways to make eCedi applicable across various use cases.
