Twenty-four-year-old Staff Nyoni has emerged as the overall winner of this year’s National ICT Innovations Awards, thanks to his groundbreaking project, The Blind Classroom—a voice-based, AI-powered platform designed to help visually impaired students learn alongside their peers.

Coming in second place is 26-year-old Vison Thondoya, whose innovation, Interactive Experiments for Secondary Schools, enables learners to conduct science experiments online from anywhere, helping bridge gaps in access to practical education.

The two innovators were selected from a competitive pool of over 200 entries and 20 shortlisted finalists. They are set to represent Malawi at the AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva this July.

In recognition of their achievements, President Arthur Peter Mutharika awarded the winners the latest iPhone handsets. The prizes were presented by Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Shadric Namalomba, during a ceremony held at the Bingu International Conference Centre.

Speaking at the event, Namalomba conveyed the President’s message of support, praising the innovators for their achievements and assuring them of government backing.

“The President sees your talent, he is proud of your achievements, and as a government, we promise to walk with you—you are not alone,” said Namalomba.

He also encouraged young innovators across the country to be proactive and ambitious in developing solutions to Malawi’s challenges.

Meanwhile, Director General of the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA), Mayamiko Nkoloma, highlighted the intense competition, noting that finalists were selected from hundreds of applicants—an indication of the country’s growing pool of local tech talent.

He said the awards reflect Malawi’s commitment to promoting innovation and empowering young people to contribute to national development and make an impact on the global stage.